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Uproar after Hopedale officer allegedly runs over ‘Rocky Raccoon’
The police department issued a statement backing the officer’s decision and urged residents not to dox him.
A Christmas Day police response to an aggressive raccoon in a Hopedale neighborhood has ignited online outrage, after witnesses said an officer used a cruiser to run over the animal in front of bystanders, including children.
The online outlash prompted Hopedale’s town administrator and chief of police to issue a joint statement on Friday, “to address public concern and misinformation” surrounding the incident.
On Dec. 25, the Hopedale Police Department received multiple calls of a raccoon “behaving aggressively during daylight hours” in a residential area, the statement said. Earlier that day, the raccoon reportedly attacked a person.
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Additional calls described the raccoon as “disoriented, wobbling, and acting erratically,” all behaviors the statement said are consistent with potential rabies infection.
Officers located the raccoon and determined that it “posed an immediate and ongoing risk to public health and safety,” which promoted intervention, the statement said. Due to the neighborhood’s density, the officer determined that use of a firearm was neither safe nor appropriate.
“Officers, therefore, employed the safest available method under the circumstances to euthanize the animal and eliminate the threat,” the release said.
Officers placed the raccoon on the side of the road for pickup by Animal Control.
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The release did not say how the officer euthanized the animal. However, social media posts claim the officers repeatedly ran over the animal with a vehicle in front of onlookers, including children.
Some posts, according to the New Bedford Guide, began nicknaming the raccoon “Rocky,” and others compared it to other allegedly mishandled animal cases.
However, the town is showing its full support of the responding officer, saying that the actions taken were “lawful, necessary, and fully authorized under Massachusetts law and public health guidance.”
In addition, the town expressed concerns that people have tried to identify, harass, or speculate about the mental health or fitness of the officer involved, and warned against doxxing or harassing the officer, saying it violates the law.
“Incidents involving wildlife can be upsetting to witness,” the statement said. “However, the safety of residents and the prevention of serious, potentially fatal disease must remain the Town’s top priority. The responding officer acted professionally, responsibly, and in the best interests of the community under difficult circumstances.”
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