Missouri
A Missouri police officer shot a blind and deaf dog. Now he's being sued.
A man has filed a lawsuit against the town of Sturgeon, Missouri, a little more than a week after a police officer shot and killed his small, blind, and deaf dog.
In a federal lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Nicholas Hunter alleges that Officer Myron Woodson and the city of Sturgeon violated his Fourth Amendment rights when Woodson killed Teddy, his 13-pound blind and deaf Shih Tzu, shortly after finding the dog wandering in a neighbor’s yard on May 19.
“Woodson’s warrantless seizure of Teddy was unnecessary, callous, and egregious as it was unwarranted by law and violative of Plaintiff Hunter’s most fundamental and guaranteed of constitutional rights,” Hunter’s lawsuit says. “At no time during the encounter between Teddy and Defendant Woodson did Teddy show any aggression towards Defendant Woodson. Teddy never barked, growled, or even moved towards Defendant Woodson. Instead, the small, blind and deaf dog simply kept trying to walk away, oblivious to the danger that Defendant Woodson posed to him.”
The shooting has outraged the town’s residents, especially after body camera footage obtained by a local news outlet contradicted the officer and city officials’ narrative of events. The mayor of Sturgeon resigned last Saturday evening after defending the shooting for several days, and Woodson has been placed on leave.
The shooting, though, is only an egregious example of a phenomenon that is so common that it has its own tag on Reason‘s website: “puppycide.” No one knows exactly how many dogs police shoot around the country, but every year there are more cases of wanton killings that, besides terrorizing owners, generate huge lawsuits, viral outrage, and in rare instances result in officers being fired, such as the case of an Arkansas officer who casually killed a nine-pound dog.
The incident in Sturgeon started when Teddy dug under Hunter’s backyard fence while Hunter was out at dinner and escaped, leaving its collar behind in the process. A neighbor called a county dispatch center to report that the dog had wandered into their yard and to get help finding its owner. According to Hunter’s lawsuit, the caller responded, “No, not at all,” when asked if the dog was aggressive.
The town of Sturgeon’s official Facebook page actually posted an alert on May 19 about the missing dog, along with photos of Teddy: “Do you know this doggie? Joint communications has been notified. The doggie seems in need of medical attention.”
Medical attention was not what the doggie received. Woodson arrived on the scene, and a few minutes later he shot Teddy twice.
In the meantime, Hunter had been called and told about the Facebook post. He was on his way to pick up Teddy, but arrived too late.
A day later, the city of Sturgeon posted on Facebook about the incident, defending Woodson’s decision: “Based on the behavior exhibited by the dog, believing the dog to be severely injured or infected with rabies, and as the officer feared being bitten and being infected with rabies, the SPD officer felt that his only option was to put the animal down,” Sturgeon wrote. “It was later learned that the animal’s behavior was because the animal was blind. Unfortunately, the animal’s lack of a collar or tags influenced the SPD Officer’s decision to put the animal down due to his belief that the animal was injured, sick and abandoned.”
Both Hunter and the neighbor filed complaints with the city. “I cannot stress enough that this animal was in no way a threat to others,” the neighbor, whose complaint was obtained by local news outlet ABC 17, wrote. “Woodson discharged his firearm multiple times in a residential area without a threat presenting itself, without warning.”
ABC 17 also obtained Woodson’s body camera footage, which showed that Teddy was never aggressive and didn’t bark or growl. Woodson tried to lasso Teddy with a catch pole—a common tool used in animal control—but the dog simply shook its head free of the rope and trotted away. After fumbling the catch pole several times, Woodson drew his gun and killed Teddy. ABC 17 reported that Woodson’s entire encounter with Teddy, from exiting his car to putting two bullets in the animal, lasted three minutes and six seconds.
After body camera footage was released, Sturgeon doubled down.
“The City believes that the officer acted within his authority based on the information available to him at the time to protect against possible injury to citizens from what appeared to be an injured, sick, and abandoned dog,” Sturgeon posted in a follow-up Facebook post.
Of course, it would have been embarrassing to admit the real reason that the officer resorted to using his gun: He was unable to snare a blind, deaf dog and was too poorly trained to come up with a solution besides shooting a harmless animal.
But police habitually lie about the behavior of dogs that they shoot. Dogs are almost always described in incident reports as snarling, aggressive, or lunging, and because department policies typically allow police to shoot dogs when they feel afraid for their safety, these shootings are almost always deemed justified.
For example, last year in Missouri a police officer shot a family’s dog and dumped it in a ditch. Similar to Hunter’s case, the dog had gotten loose during a storm, and a neighbor called to report it missing. In another case last year, Detroit cops killed a woman’s dog and dumped its body in a trash can. An Arkansas woman also filed a lawsuit after a cop accidentally shot her while trying to kill her Pomeranian—a toy breed that resembles a Koosh ball with legs.
This is the sort of behavior that’s flagged as sociopathic when committed by anyone who’s not represented by a police union.
And it’s the sort of behavior that can cost a small town like Sturgeon quite a lot of money, as city officials are surely fretting now. After Sturgeon’s mayor resigned last Friday, the acting mayor posted on Sturgeon’s Facebook account: “Like you we were just as appalled by what we saw. The actions of the Officer involved are not the values and beliefs of the residents of Sturgeon or the board of Alderman. Currently I have made calls to the Boone County Sheriff to meet and discuss an investigation.”
The city of Sturgeon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
JACKSON COUNTY, Mo. (KFVS) – Four years after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and Missouri became the first state to ban abortion, Planned Parenthood is once again offering abortions.
Medication abortions are returning, too, after a Jackson County Circuit Court ruling. However, the state’s legal battle continues with court cases and a new ballot measure.
The past four years
Four years ago, Missouri politicians used a 2019 trigger law to ban abortion within 20 minutes of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned the limited federal abortion protections of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.
Abortion was put on the ballot in 2024 by an initiative petition that collected more than 380,000 signatures. Missouri became the first state to end an abortion ban by a vote of the people in 2024 and established the Right to Reproductive Freedom in the state constitution.
Another vote this year
This year will mark the second time Missourians vote on abortion. In November, Missourians will once again vote on abortion on the new Amendment Three. A “yes” vote is to ban abortions.
The new ballot measure has limited exceptions for rape, incest and medical emergencies, only if performed before the 12-week gestational period. It’s set to be on the statewide ballot for the November 2026 midterm election.
Bonnie Lee with 40 Days for Life said she hopes Missourians vote in favor of new restrictions in November.
“Missouri is waking up, and we will make a difference in November,” Lee said.
Missourians will see this question on their ballot:
“Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:
Repeal the 2024 voter-approved Amendment providing reproductive healthcare rights, including abortion through fetal viability;
Allow abortions for rape and incest (under twelve-weeks’ gestation), emergencies, and fetal anomalies;
Allow legislation regulating abortion;
Ensure parental consent for minors’ abortions;
Prohibit gender transition procedures for minors?”
A “yes” vote would essentially repeal the Amendment Three passed in November 2024. But this language may not be final. If lawyers appeal again, it can go to the Missouri Supreme Court.”
“I think voters are now seeing they didn’t know what they were voting on [in 2024]. There was a lot of misinformation, a lot of hidden information, a lot of legalese,” Lee said.
Maggie Olivia with Abortion Action Missouri said she wants the opposite outcome at the ballot box.
“I feel all the more invigorated having seen the consequences of abortion bans to do whatever it takes to stop this new abortion ban,” Olivia said.
Olivia called the new Amendment Three an overreach by Missouri politicians.
“There are some politicians in Jefferson City who don’t like the decision we just made in 2024, so they think they can muddy the waters, change the rules,” Olivia said.
Ongoing lawsuit
This month, a Jackson County Circuit Court judge issued a permanent injunction striking down several state abortion restrictions.
Planned Parenthood said the decision also clears the way for medication abortion to be available in Missouri for the first time since 2018 and allows Planned Parenthood to resume providing it.
“For too long, politicians forced patients to leave the state for an evidence-based and trusted form of abortion care. Now that care is coming home,” said Emily Wales, president and CEO of Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood Great Plains.
Attorney General Catherine Hanaway criticized the ruling and said she plans to appeal to the Missouri Supreme Court.
“This radical decision gives abortion providers a free pass to police themselves,” Hanaway said in a statement. “My office will expeditiously appeal this dangerous decision to the Missouri Supreme Court.”
Copyright 2026 KFVS. All rights reserved.
Watch before buying a home ice cream machine
A practical guide to choosing an ice cream maker you’ll actually use.
Think you know the best ice cream shop in Missouri? Ask ten people, and you’ll likely get ten different answers.
Cheapism, a website focused on budget living, is weighing in on the debate with its recently released list of the best ice cream shops in every state. Here’s what it selected as Missouri’s best ice cream spot:
What’s the best ice cream shop in Missouri, according to Cheapism?
The media outlet selected the winners by scouring through Reddit threads, Yelp reviews, Google ratings and local favorites to find the best ice cream shop in every state.
Factoring all of that in, the honor of Missouri’s best ice cream shop goes to Clementine’s Ice Cream in St. Louis.
Clementine’s is a locally owned artisanal ice cream shop founded in 2015, known for its “naughty” (alcohol-infused) and “nice” (nonalcoholic) offerings, as well as non-dairy options.
The company has expanded from its beginnings as a single shop to multiple locations, boasting 11 shops across the Midwest, with three more on the way.
What’s Clementine’s best ice cream flavor?
Clementine’s also landed on Food & Wine’s list of essential ice cream flavors for all 50 states with its gooey butter cake ice cream.
The magazine praised the “super creamy” texture of the cream cheese ice cream and appreciated the large chunks of Clementine’s homemade gooey butter cake mixed throughout.
What is gooey butter cake?
For those not in the know, gooey butter cake is one of the Show Me State’s best-kept secrets, with its origins tracing back to St. Louis in the 1930s.
The cake allegedly came about when a baker accidentally reversed the butter-to-flour ratio while making a batch of coffee cake, resulting in a gooey, custard-like filling. Given it was the Great Depression, the bakery decided to sell the resulting cake rather than waste it, making it a hit with locals in the process.
It became so popular, in fact, that other bakeries in the city soon began making their own versions, and an iconic Missouri treat was born.
How to find a Clementine’s near you
Clementine’s has more than a dozen locations, mostly centered around St. Louis. It also has locations in Kansas City and Bentonville, Arkansas.
A Clementine’s is scheduled to open in Columbia this summer.
Check out this map to find the nearest Clementine’s location near you:
You can also get Clementine’s shipped directly to your front door via Goldbelly.
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KFVS) – As more data centers are announced across Missouri, one state lawmaker wants to get rid of non-disclosure agreements.
Republican State Rep. Tricia Byrnes from St. Charles County organized a public hearing for Sept. 16 at the Missouri Capitol for lawmakers to discuss data center regulations. Any legislation that comes out of the hearing will have to wait until January to be introduced in the General Assembly. Byrnes said she hopes local communities take action before January.
The effort comes after Amazon and Google announced multibillion-dollar data center projects in Montgomery County, which Byrnes represents.
Montgomery County farmer Harry Cope said residents have concerns about how the projects have been handled.
“The transparency that’s gone on with all of this stuff in our county has been about like looking through muddy water,” Cope said.
Byrnes said Missourians are looking for state leaders to respond.
“Missourians should never take a bad deal. And right now, folks are waiting for Jefferson City to stand up and pay attention,” Byrnes said.
Byrnes is not proposing a complete statewide stop to data center projects. She said she wants to get rid of nondisclosure agreements for data center projects and create specific noise standards and water permits. She said she wants the process to happen in public.
Gov. Mike Kehoe, a Republican, has said he supports more data centers in Missouri, saying they are better for the economy.
“It’s about opportunity, good-paying jobs, investment in our community, better efficiency. And it’s about making sure Missouri remains on the forefront of next-generation technology,” Kehoe said.
Byrnes did not directly comment on whether Kehoe will support her legislation. She addressed a comment the governor made last week, when he implied foreign adversaries such as China are spreading misinformation about data centers.
“We have extremely intelligent people all across Missouri, and what I’m hearing now is this spin that they’re hearing stuff from China. I can tell you, no one from China asked me to have you here today,” Byrnes said.
Missouri House Democratic Leader Ashley Aune said there is an opportunity for lawmakers to craft legislation based on what Missourians want.
“I don’t have a proposal top of mind about what regulation would, should, can look like across the state. But what I will say is that we have a real opportunity to work with our voters,” Aune said.
Copyright 2026 KFVS. All rights reserved.
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