Video footage documented the moments after Los Angeles police fatally shot a dog wearing a New York Knicks jersey. Officers responded to a call about a screaming woman, which turned out to be a celebration of the Knicks winning the NBA championship.
Following the Knicks’ victory in the NBA Finals on Saturday, the Los Angeles Police Department shot and killed the dog during an unrelated incident, the LAPD stated in a news release on Tuesday. The incident occurred in Canoga Park, a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley.
The LAPD explained they were responding to reports of a “screaming woman.” A person reporting the incident guided officers to an apartment where a resident opened the door. A large dog was barking beside her.
“The officers asked her to secure the dog, and the resident closed her door momentarily,” the release says. “She re-opened the door, and the dog exited the apartment.”
Once outside, the dog charged at an officer, leading to an Officer-Involved Shooting (OIS). The Los Angeles Department of Animal Services took custody of the dog, the LAPD reported. The dog’s owner cooperated with the investigation.
Jameson was the dog’s name, as confirmed by the owner’s girlfriend to NBC News. A video, gaining more than 15 million views on TikTok, shows a woman lamenting over the deceased dog, clad in a blue and orange jersey.
“The Knicks just won the championship,” she cries out. “We were just so happy. We just celebrating the Knicks.”
About six officers are visible in the video near the grieving woman. Off-camera voices criticize the police response, with one voice shouting about more pressing crimes like drug activity and stabbings.
The LAPD later confirmed to NBC Los Angeles that the woman’s shouting resulted from celebrating the Knicks’ win. The team triumphed over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, securing New York’s first NBA championship in 53 years.