ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

LA HABRA, CALIFORNIA

A Newport Beach firefighter is suspected of being responsible for the death of a girlfriend's dog Thursday evening.

The firefighter, who lives in La Habra with his girlfriend in the 300 block of Oakland Drive, is suspected of punching a 6-pound Chihuahua named Bella after it bit him.

Newport Beach Fire Department Chief Steve Lewis said that a private party had notified him of the situation concerning firefighter Aaron Reed, but that no action would be taken until official word comes from La Habra police.

Officer Rick Van Vleet of the La Habra Police Department, who handles animal control issues, would not identify the firefighter by name.

"We've confirmed that a Chihuahua bit a young man and that apparently he struck the dog," Van Vleet said. "The dog was injured and the vet put her to sleep. It's still under investigation."

At this point, Van Vleet said, it's still a dog-bite investigation, so the dog's body is being examined for rabies. After the rabies test, there will be a necropsy to determine cause of death.

Comments (3)

ATL cop: ... Gee, he must be proud. Big man killed a 6 lb dog. Dog bite? How big could its teeth even be? 1 October 12, 2009 Sarge01: ... ATL Cop, don't be so quick to judge on this one. When it comes to the smaller species of "man's best friend", you might be surprised. I once had a case where an eight-pound Jack Russell terrier put a woman in the hospital for several days due to bite injuries. 2 October 13, 2009 ID2422: ... I lost a chunk of a thumb and had pretty good crush injuries from a little 14-pound wiener dog. I didn't punch the pooch though. 3 October 16, 2009

Write comment

You must be logged in to post a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.