Pasco Court Awards $36,000 After Neighbor Kills Dog

A man, James Anderson from Eltopia, was awarded over $36,000 by a Franklin County Superior Court Jury after his neighbor shot and killed his dog according to news reports. That dog, an English springer spaniel named Chucky, was like his son because he was never married and never had children. James is a disabled former iron worker and had trained Chucky hours every day, teaching him to ride on a quad, a motorcycle, to climb ladders, and a 100 word vocabulary.

On March 9, 2014 Chucky suddenly went missing and Mr. Anderson went looking for his dog. He found him the next morning shot and in shock in a nearby field. He had been shot with both a pellet and a BB type buck shot usually used in bird hunting. His neighbor, Scott Hayles, and his sons admitted to hunting in that field but said they did not own the type of pellet and BB gun that had shot Mr. Andersons dog. After he found Chucky, he rushed him to the Vet but was in shock, hypothermic, hypoglycemic, hypotensive, and very dehydrated. Chucky died a short time later.

After being interviewed by police, The Hayles admitted to owning a gun that shoots both the pellet and BB's that were found in Chucky. It is also undisputed that Mr. Hayles let both his preteen sons shoot those guns repeatedly. Around half of the award was for the medical vet bills and costs. The other $15,000 was for emotional distress. Sources say this is believed to be the largest settlement in Washington State history over the killing of a dog.