JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The daughter of the Northwest Jacksonville man who held SWAT team members at bay for more than 6 hours Wednesday told News4Jax that officers didn't need to shoot and kill the family's dog.
Shelby Vining, whose 47-year-old father, Vincent Vining, is accused of hitting her and a female neighbor before barricading himself in his house in Northwest Jacksonville, said she asked officers several times to take her dog away during the house of negotiations.
Vincent Vining eventually did come out of the house after SWAT broke down his front door with a battering ram and he came out of the house. But as police were taking him into custody, the dog jumped out of the car. Feeling threatened, SWAT team members fired three shots.
Shelby Vining said the dog didn't die immediately, but ran to a neighbor's driveway, where he passed away.
She said her dog, named Axl, was her world and her best friend. The two shared the same birthday and did everything together.
Knowing that the scene was tense with lots of armed police officers, she said she asked police if they could find out if her dog was OK.
"I said, 'Can you radio someone on premises and asked to check on my dog?' and he laughed at me and said 'I'd look really silly if I asked someone to do that,'" Ms. Vining said.
After her dog was killed, they claimed they didn't even know it was there.
"They said they didn't even know a pit was on the premises," she said. "That's the biggest thing, they were walking around for hours on the premises and I asked and asked and asked."
Shelby Vining admits her father did slap her and then confronted a neighbor, who fought back, leaving his face black and blue. But she said her dog had nothing to do with the situation and she tried to do everything possible to get him out of danger.
News4Jax asked the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office for a comment about the dog's death, but it had not responded by the end of the day.
Vincent Vining has been involuntarily committed for psychiatric evaluation and she hopes he gets the treatment that he needs.