Dog shooter may face charges

By Jim Maniaci
Cibola County Bureau

SAN RAFAEL — The 41-year-old woman who used a .30-30 caliber lever-action rifle to shoot a neighbor's dog may face criminal charges, according to the Cibola County Sheriff's Office.

The incident, one of a continuing series in San Rafael, has prompted a warning from the CCSO cautioning people about the very specific limits of a special state livestock law. Basically it comes down to being allowed to kill dogs only when they are physically attacking your livestock on your land, and making sure your bullets or arrows stay on your property without striking other animals or humans.

"We keep telling the public, don't shoot onto other people's property. People have been blasting away and we've just been lucky they haven't hit an innocent person or child and they haven't killed someone while trying to destroy a dog," commented Lt. Harry Hall.

Deputy Sheriff Mike Oelcher the department's K-9 officer was called to the 5600 block of Ice Caves Road (State Hwy. 53) around 8 a.m. Friday to see Manuel Atencio, 61, about his German shepherd being shot.

"Manuel said he heard shots and his dog returned home bleeding from a large neck wound and went underneath their trailer," the deputy said.

Oelcher went to see Kathy Massey in the 5200 block of Ice Caves Road. She told the deputy the dog chased her small horses and a llama around the inside of her metal pipe coral. By the time she retrieved her rifle and fired, she hit the dog in a neighboring field about 60 feet away, the deputy said. She also told Oelcher she fired twice at one of her own dogs for chasing the livestock.

The horses and llama escaped injury from both the dog and the rifle. Oelcher warned her she might face criminal charges.

Trailing the bleeding dog, Oelcher found the animal at Atencio's where his son was petting the canine to keep him calm. The bullet apparently went through the dog leaving a 4-inch exit wound. He also saw "an injury to the left paw with a semi-circle chuck of flesh missing," Oelcher said.

Atencio had Grants City Animal Control take the wounded dog to be euthanized. He estimated it was worth $250. The county contracts with the city for animal control services.


Tool burglary
A 39-year-old rural Grants man has reported thieves stole several hundred dollars worth of tools and a toolbox outside his Small Ranch Road home in late November.

Anyone with information about the crooks or stolen items should telephone the Cibola County Sheriff's Office 24-hour number (505) 287-9476 or Cibola Crime Stoppers at 287-8400 and be eligible for a reward.

Billy Small went to the CCSO on Nov. 27 and Deputy Sheriff James Peters took the report of the five stolen items, including the black 2-foot long tool box, a Chicago brand pipe bender, a 25-ft. long extension cord, a voltage tester (make and model unknown) and a pipe wrench with a chain wrap.

To contact reporter Jim Maniaci in Grants, telephone 285-6184 or (505) 870-7775 (cellular).