LAPD releases bodycam video of dog shooting during Knicks celebration

The release of LAPD bodycam footage has sharpened one accountability question in Canoga Park: did officers follow department policy before shooting Jameson, the 106-pound family dog, or did the encounter escalate too fast on a doorstep already thrown into confusion by a late-night celebration? The video shows officers at the 7500 block of Jordan Avenue after neighbors called 911 about a woman screaming, then showing one officer firing multiple shots after Jameson barked and moved toward police.

What officers walked into was not a domestic-violence emergency, but a Knicks title celebration in an apartment. Police later learned the screaming came from a family marking the New York Knicks’ first championship in more than 50 years, and family members said Jameson was wearing a Knicks shirt when he was killed. The dog was described as a 2-year-old golden retriever, Saint Bernard and poodle mix. One neighbor who made the 911 call later said they felt guilty, but believed someone was in danger.

The edited LAPD video appears to show one officer firing four shots. LAPD sources said the officer’s face was blurred in the release because of threats received, a detail that has become part of the wider fight over how the department handles transparency after high-profile force incidents. Capt. Mike Bland said the department does not draw conclusions until the facts are known, and LAPD opened an Internal Affairs Division investigation separate from the use-of-force review. Bland said those investigations can take up to a year and require interviews with witnesses, review of video and forensic analysis.

Pressure on the department intensified as the footage came out. The LA National Action Network held a news conference in front of Los Angeles Police Department headquarters, demanding transparency, the release of the bodycam video and the names of the officers involved. Activists also planned a rally and candlelight vigil, while a memorial grew in the hallway where neighbors watched Jameson die.

Public outrage spread quickly beyond the block. A GoFundMe titled Justice for Jameson had raised more than $206,000 by Friday afternoon, a sign of how deeply the shooting landed with people who saw the dog as a family pet caught in a policing failure. Mayor Karen Bass called the footage “disturbing and tragic,” underscoring the political damage that can follow when police release video after a controversial killing.