Man Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison for Cocaine That Killed Police Dog
Sadly, no amount of jail time will bring back Viper the police dog, who died when he bit into a package of cocaine. But it still feels like justice is being served — the North Carolina man responsible has been sentenced to 11 years in jail.
Of course, Jamie Gonzalez-Lopez actually pleaded guilty to a number of drug charges, not police dog homicide. Poor Viper was just an unintended victim in all of this.
Back in July of 2011, Gonzalez-Lopez ordered a kilo of cocaine, which he hid in a field. Viper the drug-sniffing police dog found it but made the fatal mistake of biting the package and shaking it, accidentally OD-ing on its contents.
It's a sad story made that much sadder by the fact that Viper was just doing his job — and probably giving in to his canine instincts. (Bite. Shake.) One wonders if the dog's death was considered in Gonzalez-Lopez's sentencing. After all, it's always sadder when an animal dies.
How's this for a bittersweet ending? Over 200 people showed up at Viper's memorial service.
