CEDAR CITY — A Parowan man was arrested Saturday after police said he unlawfully shot and killed his neighbor’s dog.
Bradley Niederhauser, 50, was subsequently booked into Iron County Jail on suspicion of aggravated cruelty to animals, a class A misdemeanor, and discharging a weapon within 600 feet of a dwelling, a class B misdemeanor.
According to a probable cause statement filed by the Iron County Sheriff’s Office in support of the arrest, the situation unfolded Saturday in the area of 200 North and 3700 West in Parowan.
“Bradley Niederhauser called dispatch stating the neighbors dog was out and if it gets onto his property he was going to shoot it,” the statement said, adding that Niederhauser called dispatch again a short time later saying he had shot the animal.
The Sheriff’s Office deputy arrived to find the dog’s body at the edge of the property.
The statement said that Bradley told the deputy he “shot the dog at the edge of the property as it was charging him” before walking up next to it and putting it down. However, the deputy added, “Bradley’s story could not match up to the tracks that were located where the dog was shot nor the blood that was found on the scene.”
Although Niederhauser reportedly expressed his intent to shoot any dog that comes onto his property and stated that he was legally justified in doing so, the deputy said he was unable to find evidence to support Niederhauser’s claim that his own personal safety was at risk.
“There was no evidence supporting Bradley’s claims of fearing for his safety, which would mean he killed the dog without the legal right to do so,” the statement said, adding that the shots were fired from within 600 feet of the neighbor’s house across the street.
“According to the location he described that he was shooting from, he was not shooting in a safe direction due to houses in the backdrop,” the deputy concluded in the probable cause statement.
Although the dog’s breed was not specified in the probable cause statement, subsequent posts and comments on social media, including some from the dog’s owner, indicated the animal was a black Labrador retriever.
Updated Nov. 25, 4 p.m. to include information about the breed of dog involved.
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