Suspect Surrenders After Deputy Barks
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) - Henry Ritter had no plans of biting a suspect he was chasing, but he saw nothing wrong with barking.
Ritter and Richard Gough, both deputies with the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department, stopped a car July 12 because of a broken taillight. The driver, 21-year-old John Nicholas Hood, jumped from the car and ran into the woods, according to the arrest report.
The officers' calls to Hood went unanswered so Gough said they were sending a dog after him. Ritter started barking.
"He stood up and said, 'I'm here. Call off the dog,'" Ritter said.
Hood, of Decatur, appeared in court this week and was charged with driving under the influence, driving on a revoked license, evading arrest and a taillight violation. Judge Bob Moon bound his case over to the grand jury.
"I suppose as long as the officers have had their shots and don't bite, I'll allow them to continue that technique," Moon said.
Ritter said it wasn't the first time he and Gough have barked at a suspect.
"We've played that card, and it's worked," he said.
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) - Henry Ritter had no plans of biting a suspect he was chasing, but he saw nothing wrong with barking.
Ritter and Richard Gough, both deputies with the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department, stopped a car July 12 because of a broken taillight. The driver, 21-year-old John Nicholas Hood, jumped from the car and ran into the woods, according to the arrest report.
The officers' calls to Hood went unanswered so Gough said they were sending a dog after him. Ritter started barking.
"He stood up and said, 'I'm here. Call off the dog,'" Ritter said.
Hood, of Decatur, appeared in court this week and was charged with driving under the influence, driving on a revoked license, evading arrest and a taillight violation. Judge Bob Moon bound his case over to the grand jury.
"I suppose as long as the officers have had their shots and don't bite, I'll allow them to continue that technique," Moon said.
Ritter said it wasn't the first time he and Gough have barked at a suspect.
"We've played that card, and it's worked," he said.
