Trial set for Baltimore officer accused of slitting dog's throat

ANNAPOLIS Md. (Reuters) - A jury trial has been set for a Baltimore police officer accused of slitting the throat of a dog that had run loose from its home, according to court records filed on Thursday. Police had restrained the 7-year-old female Shar-Pei named Nala after it bit a woman on the hand. While the animal was restrained, Officer Jeffrey Bolger, 49, slashed the dog's throat with a knife after saying he would "gut" the animal, according to charging police documents. The dog was killed. Bolger will face felony animal cruelty charges at a jury trial on July 28, the court filings showed. Bolger was suspended without pay, arrested and charged, police said. He has been a member of the Baltimore police since 1992 and is assigned to the Special Operations Section. "It was a complete violation of protocol," police spokesman Eric Kowalczy told a news conference on Wednesday. "It's not often police speak out against one of their own, but we are all truly appalled." Police said another officer, Thomas Schmidt, a Baltimore policeman since 1990, had been suspended over the case. (Reporting by John Clarke; Editing by Ian Simpson, Leslie Adler and Peter Cooney)