Owners of pit bull shot and killed by ex-Falls officer facing lawsuits

May 3—NIAGARA FALLS — A retired Niagara Falls police officer who shot and killed a pit bull outside his 65th Street home last September has joined one of his neighbors in filing lawsuits seeking compensation for injuries and other damages from the dog's owners.

The lawsuits, one filed by former Falls police officer John J. Petrishin and the other filed by his neighbor, Joseph Martelli, allege that on Sept. 18, 2023, they were both attacked in separate incidents by the same pit bull, a dog owned by their neighbors, Jason Conklin Sr. and Kendall M. Conklin.

The lawsuits, filed on April 25 in state supreme court in Niagara County, contend that the pit bull, housed at the Conklins' residence at 250 65th St., attacked and bit Martelli and later "lunged" in a menacing way at Petrishin, forcing him to defend himself by using his state-registered firearm to shoot and kill the animal.

In his lawsuit, Martelli maintains that he was attacked and bitten by the pit bull while he was walking on his street and that he was "painfully and seriously injured" as a result.

In his lawsuit, Petrishin indicates that he was on his own property when he was "attacked" by the same dog. The lawsuit suggests Petrishin was "forced to protect himself with a firearm" after the pit bull "lunged" at him, "showing its teeth" and leaving him "in fear of and with serious injuries."

In his lawsuit, Petrishin also contends that, as a result of his involvement in the incident, he has been the "subject and target of harassment and threats."

The shooting of the dog drew attention last fall on social media where dozens of people shared information about Petrishin and his involvement.

Both lawsuits describe the pit bull as having a "temperament" that would make it "likely that it would attack and bite people." The plaintiffs argue that, despite "knowledge of the dangerous propensities of the pit bull dog, and in violation of the law," the Conklins "continued to wrongfully keep and harbor the pit bull. They also claim that the attacks were due to the "carelessness, recklessness and negligence" of the defendants and that they created the "dangerous and defective" condition surrounding the separate attacks.

The plaintiffs are asking the courts to award them judgments in an "amount that exceeds the jurisdictional limits of all lower courts that would otherwise have jurisdiction" as well as "further or different relief as the court may deem just and proper, together with the costs and disbursements" of the filing of their claims.

Both plaintiffs are being represented by attorney, Ryan Johnsen of Lipsitz Green Scime and Cambria in Buffalo.

Attempts to reach Johnsen were unsuccessful.

QUESTIONS REMAIN

Reached by telephone on Thursday, Kendall Conklin said she's still having a "really hard time" coming to terms with what happened to her family dog, a 9-year-old named Nova. The mother of five children said her 4-year-old twins are still asking what happened to their dog and expected it to come back. Conklin said federal marshals served her with the paperwork from the lawsuits earlier this week.

"I don't even know how to feel because I didn't even allow myself to finish processing all of it that happened in the first place," she said. "I still don't have all the answers."

Conklin said her dog, which she had since it was a 1-year-old, had never bitten anyone before.

"She didn't like random people being on the property, but she has never bitten them. She would bark but that would be the extent of it," she said.

Conklin said she still has questions about how her dog ended up dead in her driveway with three bullets in its head. Conklin said she was not home when the incident happened and that her 14-year-old daughter found the dog's body.

While Petrishin says the dog attacked him on his property. It's lifeless body was found in her driveway.

"I don't know how the dog got back to the driveway," she said. "It was shot three times in the head. There was no way she walked. She couldn't have run. How would she have gotten back there? That's something I still don't know."

Conklin said she made repeated attempts in the months since the incident to contact Falls police for updates on the progress of the investigation and was told that charges were pending. She said detectives told her on Wednesday that the case has now been closed and that Niagara County District Attorney Brian Seaman's office declined to press charges.

"I was informed that he was going to be charged for this and he was going to be held accountable and I just needed to have patience and that never happened," she said.

"They told me not to say anything or do anything but somehow he knows it's closed before me and he filed a lawsuit. I feel like should have at least been informed. This is a sensitive topic," she added.

THE INVESTIGATION

Niagara Falls police confirmed they opened an investigation into Petrishin's shooting of the dog last year, but said no charges were ultimately filed. Law enforcement sources with knowledge of the investigation told the Gazette that a case against Petrishin would be "difficult" because there may be "less than enough evidence to make an arrest and win a conviction" in court.

"We're not saying (Petrishin) was right. By no stretch of the imagination was he right," the person with knowledge of the investigation said.

Seaman confirmed on Thursday that his office and investigators made a joint decision not to prosecute Petrishin.

"We assessed (the case) and didn't believe there was enough legally admissible evidence to bring a charge," Seaman said.

A law enforcement source confirmed that "arrest paperwork" was prepared for Petrishin, but never executed.

POLICE REPORT

A copy of the Falls police report from the day of the incident indicates the responding officer was notified by dispatch that an "attacking dog had been shot and appeared deceased" on 65th Street.

According to the report, upon arriving at the scene, the responding officer found a deceased canine "laying on its left side in front of a garage door" at a home across the street from Petrishin's house in the 200 block.

"The dog, a brown and white pit bull, was in a deceased state with a large quantity of blood coming from its head and neck," the officer wrote in the report. "A trail of blood was observed leading from the dog's body east crossing the street onto the east sidewalk next to the fence" of the property where the dead dog was found."

The police report indicates that the pit bull was shot to death after it "lunged" at Petrishin while "aggressively showing teeth."

According to the report, the retired officer told police the animal's actions left him "in fear of serious physical injury" and feeling as if he "had no choice" but to defend himself. In defending himself, the report indicates that Petrishin fired three shots at the dog, "impacting it all three times in the head."

According to the report, Petrishin said he was attacked by the same pit bull that previously attacked and bit his neighbor. The report indicates that Petrishin told the responding officer that he witnessed the earlier attack involving his neighbor and called the police. Petrishin told the officer that he went to check on his neighbor and when he walked back to his home, the dog appeared and "lunged at him attempting to bite him," which caused him to fire the shots.

The report notes that the former Falls officer is in possession of a handgun that is legally registered in New York state and has a state-sanctioned pistol permit.

According to the report, the investigating officer also interviewed a resident whom the officer reportedly saw standing on the east side of the street, holding his right hand.

The report indicates that the witness, who would appear, based on the claims in the lawsuits, to be Martelli, told the officer that he was walking south on the sidewalk when "suddenly without warning" the pit bull dog appeared from the front lawn of a home in the 200 block. According to the report, the witness said the dog "ran directly at him, aggressively biting him on his right hand causing pain and injury."

The officer reported observing two large puncture wounds between the thumb and wrist area of the witness's hand and noted in his report that the witness complained of pain and voiced concern about the dog's rabies status. The report notes that the witness refused an offer from the officer for treatment by emergency medical service and instead, the witness indicated that he would visit a local urgent care.

According to the report, two other witnesses told the responding officer they did not witness the events but did hear the shots. They reported that they have witnessed the dog running loose multiple times and that the animal "has caused issues in the past but to the best of their memory has never bitten before."

According to the police report, the dog's owner told police that the dog was licensed in the city and up to date on shots. The report indicates that the owner became "irate" and demanded to know what happened to her dog and when advised that the investigation would be ongoing, threatened legal action before going back inside her home.