LIVERMORE — Officers shot and killed a pit bull that attacked a police dog and arrested six people, including the pit bull’s owner, at a south Livermore apartment complex Tuesday after a shooting into a nearby home, officials said.
The dog attack happened after police responded at 10:44 a.m. to reports of gunshots fired at a house in the 2700 block of Palm Avenue, Officer Traci Rebiejo said. Police found that at least one bullet had penetrated the side garage door of the home, and they traced the trajectory of the round to an apartment complex in the 900 block of South Livermore Avenue, determining it was likely fired from a rear yard there.
No one was injured in the shooting, Rebiejo said, and the owner of the home — the only person there at the time — was in the backyard.
When an officer entered the backyard of the rear apartment at the complex, he tried to back out after a pit bull ran toward him, Rebiejo said. The dog then continued toward the open gate, and the officer tried to fend it off with his foot.
Once outside the gate, the pit bull honed in on a Livermore police K-9 officer and her dog, then attacked the dog by biting its neck, Rebiejo said. The first officer grabbed the pit bull’s collar and tried to drag it off the police dog, but the collar came off.
The pit bull again attacked, latching onto the police dog’s back leg and then its neck, and would not let go, Rebiejo said. The first officer then shot the pit bull, which died shortly after.
After entering the apartment, police found a .22-caliber rifle, which they believe to be the weapon used in the shooting, along with a .40-caliber handgun, Rebiejo said. Evidence of methamphetamine and marijuana sales also were found in the apartment.
Officers arrested Nehemiah Grisso, 34, and Robert Maynard, 24, on suspicion of shooting at the house, Rebiejo said, and Zachary Kraus, 20, Krista Kresge, 22, Kelly Morgenstern, 39, and Alisha Morgenstern, 18, were arrested on suspicion of being an accessory to the crime. Grisso and Kelly Morgenstern also were arrested on suspicion of methamphetamine possession, and Maynard for a probation violation.
The suspects are all from Livermore, police said, but it was not known Wednesday whether they all reside at the apartment.
The police dog, a 15-month-old German shepherd named Bugsy, received cuts and bruises on his neck and leg, but was otherwise unshaken by the incident with the pit bull, Sgt. Keith Graves said. Bugsy, who has only been on the street for about two months, was taken to the veterinarian immediately after the struggle; he will be fit to return to work in about four or five days.
Follow Erin Ivie at Twitter.com/erin_ivie.
