WEXFORD COUNTY — Troopers say a Harrietta man was arrested after shooting and killing another man’s service dog.
MSP was called to the home in Colfax Township around 5:20 p.m. on Nov. 27.
They said the dog, a German Shepherd named Smokey, was walking off leash about 12 feet in front of his owner down the driveway, which runs through federal and state forest.
Smokey’s owner told troopers he heard a loud gunshot, and Smokey yelped before falling down and dying. The owner yelled, “Hey, you shot my dog!” He didn’t see anyone but walked to an area of his driveway where he told troopers he had seen tire tracks earlier that day.
He found a man, Douglas Alan Barnes, and confronted him as he tried to leave in a truck. Barnes said he thought he had shot a coyote.
MSP arrived, interviewed Barnes and took his rifle.
Troopers said the scope was set to 3X, a 40 feet field of view at 100 yards on that model. Smokey and his owner were about 104 yards away.
An arrest warrant was issued at the end of 2023 and Barnes turned himself in on Jan. 5, 2024.
