Chicago Man Accused of Shooting Neighbor’s Dog Is Released with Curfew

A judge refused to jail a Chicago man on Monday who was accused of shooting his neighbor’s dog in the head.

Judge Mary Marubio ordered 19-year-old Darrick Bender to go home under a nighttime curfew and said he must avoid getting near the animal’s owners, CWB Chicago reported Tuesday.

Cashless bail: A judge yesterday decided that a Chicago man accused of shooting a dog in the head and having two 50-round ammunition magazines is not a threat to public safety.

She rejected a prosecutor's request to keep him in jail and sent him home.https://t.co/wztOqKBz2H

— CWBChicago (@CWBChicago) September 26, 2023

The shooting happened Sunday evening on Chicago’s Southwest Side, according to Fox 32.

Police responded to the scene in the 5000 block of South La Crosse, the CWB Chicago article said.

“Before they arrived, dispatchers radioed that a 911 caller reported that a man had just shot his dog one address away from where the ShotSpotter indicated a gun had been fired, according to a Bender’s CPD [Chicago Police Department] arrest report,” the outlet stated.

Two men matching descriptions apparently ran from officers at the scene. Bender ducked behind a house, tossing a backpack over a fence moments before the officers nabbed him.

The bag reportedly held a loaded 9-millimeter handgun featuring a laser sight, loose ammunition, and a pair of 50-round drum magazines.

The neighbor later identified the suspect, whom he claimed shot his American Staffordshire Terrier in the head. It is unclear if the dog survived the ordeal.

“Prosecutors charged Bender with aggravated cruelty to animals, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, and reckless discharge of a firearm endangering others. And they asked Judge Marubio to keep Bender in jail as a public safety threat, court records show,” the CWB Chicago report said.

However, Marubio decided to release the suspect, and he was also told to check in with the court’s pretrial services division along with the other stipulations.

It is important to note that Democrat-run Illinois eliminated cash bail on September 18, even though the move brought heavy criticism, according to Breitbart News.

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Solo Bree via Storyful

Following the decision, an Illinois man who allegedly abandoned his dead wife’s body on the side of a road was freed due to the cashless bail system, the outlet reported Friday.

Per the CWB Chicago report, police arrested Bender in August regarding separate allegations.

“A 52-year-old woman told police that Bender pointed a gun at her, and a CPD surveillance camera operator saw him in possession of a firearm with an extended magazine, according to the August 17 arrest report,” the outlet said, adding he was charged in the case, but the charges were later dropped.