Stokes County, SBI investigate fatal shooting of dog by off-duty Winston-Salem officer

Zack Taylor, of Walnut Grove, said his dog, Chief, was shot and killed Sunday by a neighbor. The neighbor, the Winston-Salem officer, told Taylor that he shot Chief with his service revolver after Chief attacked his own dog.

Taylor and his wife, Michaela, don't buy it.

"My dog was a giant baby, and he got executed by a Winston-Salem cop," Taylor said of the 1-year-old Anatolian shepherd. "He was not a threat or aggressive, and we've got vets writing letters to corroborate that."

The Taylors also have four children. 

The Stokes County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Tuesday that its deputies and agents with the State Bureau of Investigation are investigating the incident in the Adams Ridge Road area of Walnut Cove.

“We take any incident involving the discharge of a firearm seriously,” Sheriff Joey Lemons said in a press release. “With the SBI assisting, we are committed to establishing a clear understanding of what occurred.”

The sheriff’s office said it was withholding the officer’s name “pending further review and investigative procedures.” The Winston-Salem Police Department acknowledged Tuesday that it was informed of the incident and that an internal review “remains ongoing,” but declined to identify the officer.

The Journal is not releasing the officer's name until it is confirmed by authorities.

“Because the appropriate jurisdiction is investigating the incident, it would be inappropriate to comment further on the facts or circumstances,” the police department added. “The Winston-Salem Police Department takes all incidents involving its employees seriously and will continue to monitor the outcome of the external investigation while evaluating the matter under department policy and applicable procedures.”

Chief died from a shot to the eye, and the SBI took the body for examination, Taylor said.

"That should tell you something right there," he added.

The neighbor told Taylor he shot Chief on the private road that serves a handful of houses, including theirs.

"Me, my dad, my friend, and about four sheriff's deputies and the detectives, we combed that entire road looking for shell casings, looking for blood tracks, trying to corroborate what he said," Taylor recounted. "There was never a shell casing found, and the blood trail didn't start until about 100 yards away" from where the officer said he shot chief. 

"Every one of them said the story doesn't make sense," he added.