SALEM -- Marion County sheriff's deputies shot and killed a pit bull Friday morning that attacked a deputy, minutes after another pit bull tried to jump into a patrol car, investigators said.
The mid-morning incident began with a 9-1-1 call from a man on SE Oda Lane who said a neighbor's 60 to 70-pound pit bull chased him into his house when he tried to put the garbage out.
When deputies arrived, they learned that the dog's owner lived on nearby Beck Lane. The dog was seen unleashed in the yard. It charged the deputies, trying to jump in the open window of the patrol car.
The deputies stayed in the car, honking the horn to get the attention of the owner, who came out of and put the dog behind a fence.
The county animal control officer was called to the home. As one deputy spoke with the owner, the other joined the animal control officer when a second pit bull showed up in the yard and charged the deputy.
Attempts by the owner to call off the dog failed. The deputy kicked the dog several times but the attack continued and the deputy shot the dog dead.
The dog's owner, Luke Fleming was cited for allowing animals to roam at large. The case remained under investigation.
