This pit bull lost a leg after being shot by Fall River police. The owners are suing.

FALL RIVER — The city is about to face another police-related lawsuit, this time for the shooting of an 11-month-old pit bull named Honey, after an officer entered the wrong South Main Street residence without warning nearly two years ago.

Honey survived, but because of the damage caused by the .40-caliber Smith & Wesson bullet that former Fall River police officer Connor Levesque fired in June 2022, emergency veterinarians had to amputate the dog’s left front leg.

Security cameras provided by neighbors to Honey’s owners from different angles show Levesque opening the door to the apartment at 2669 S. Main St., near the Tiverton line, without knocking. The dog is then seen running out and across South Main Street when she was shot.

The video shows a different scene than is described by Levesque in his police report. Levesque wrote in his report that he believed he was walking a common area in the building when he encountered the dog, who he said advanced on him in an aggressive manner.

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Levesque, who was not bitten by Honey, claimed he injured his leg when he was backpedaling from the dog. The surveillance video does not indicate the officer was injured or limping before another police officer took him to the hospital.

Case is not just about an injured pet, says attorney

Attorney Melissa Hendrie, representing Honey’s owners, Richardson DeSilva and Linoshka Acevedo, said it’s not just about the dog being shot when Levesque entered their apartment without announcing himself or knocking, then shooting their dog — but how the city has reacted, or not reacted, to their two-year effort to settle the matter.

Acevedo said the family paid almost $6,000 in veterinarian bills that they had to put on credit cards after Honey was shot. The city charged the family $500 to transport the dog to the emergency veterinarian, then cited them for not licensing Honey.

The shooting of Honey got the media’s attention at the time. But Hendrie said she and the dog’s owners decided to stay out of the spotlight and try to work with the city for an equitable resolution out of court.

So far, the city offered the couple $10,000, well below the compensation they requested, said Hendrie.

“We weren’t looking for any payday. That’s not the case at all. These are just regular people who work, have never been involved with the police at all,” said Hendrie. “We were just really hopeful [the city] would see the case the way we did and make an offer that was fair and reasonable.”

Hendrie said she believes that the city attorneys are treating Honey “more like property than like family.”

“Which I get — under the law, a dog is property. But don’t forget there was a breaking and entering into their home, and it was negligence of just walking in without knocking. Then having a flippant attitude afterward,” said Hendrie.

Acevedo said after Honey was shot, a police sergeant on the scene said incidents like the shooting "happens all the time" and said the city would pay for any bills.

Hendrie said she plans to file the lawsuit this week and will include complaints of breaking and entering and negligence.

Dog shot: Fall River police officer kills attacking dog while trying to arrest owner

How Honey is adapting to losing a leg

There is no doubt Honey is a rambunctious dog who demands attention from visitors. Acevedo said Honey is a gentle companion to her now 4-year-old autistic son and nearly 2-year-old son, Leo.

“I remember that day. It was a pure nightmare,” said Acevedo.

On June 10, Levesque was responding to a request for a welfare check on another resident, which police had reportedly done on multiple occasions for this person.

Acevedo, who was seven months pregnant with Leo at the time and preparing to go on maternity leave due to an at-risk pregnancy, said her partner of 10 years, DeSilva had just returned with Honey from Colt State Park in Bristol, Rhode Island, an outing the family often enjoyed.

She said DeSilva was hanging out with Honey on the floor of the living room when Levesque walked through the door. Honey ran out and was shot.

“He didn’t announce himself; he didn’t knock. He could have used so many ways of force, but he immediately had his hand on the gun,” said Acevedo.

At the time of the shooting on South Main Street at around 5 p.m. on an early Friday evening, Acevedo said there were neighbor children playing close by and traffic on the busy South Main Street. She said she wonders what could have happened if the bullet strayed.

After Honey was shot, Acevedo said, neighbors who know the dog were able to catch her over the Tiverton line and start giving her aid.

Physically, Honey is doing well as a three-legged dog, but Acevedo worries as she gets older, it will be more difficult for the pit bull.

Honey weighed 75 pounds when she was shot. Acevedo said they must keep her under 50 pounds so she can carry the weight on three legs. She has spoken with a company that makes prostheses for dogs.

The Fall River Police Department spokesperson Detective Sgt. Moses Pereira said that Levesque is currently a police officer in Swansea. According to his LinkedIn account, he became a full-time police officer in Somerset in 2017 until moving to the FRPD in March 2021. He began work in Swansea in November.

Pereira declined a request to release a use-of-force report, citing possible pending legal action in the matter.

City Corporation Counsel Alan Rumsey did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the pending lawsuit.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Owners of pit bull shot by police in 2022 suing Fall River