Reginald Ferguson (Courtesy of Webster Parish Sheriff's Office)
A man acting as a police officer in Webster Parish is arrested for shooting a dog over the weekend. Webster Parish Sheriff Jason Parker says 54-year-old Reginald Ferguson shot the dog as the dog’s owner was within very close proximity, and she’s lucky that she didn’t get hurt.
“When he shot at the dog twice, the lady was in very close proximity. At one point, she was in direct line of fire when he pulled the trigger. After the dog was shot, he continued to point the gun at the lady,” Parker explained.
A video posted onto social media shows Ferguson wearing a Cullen Police Department uniform and badge. Sheriff Parker says Ferguson was not dispatched to the scene; he went on his own.
“He received a complaint, from my understanding, of a possible aggressive dog at that address. That’s something that occurred in an incident earlier in the morning in the town. He went over there to talk to the lady, and that’s when the dog came out of the house when she answered the door,” Parker said.
In fact, it appears that Ferguson is not even on the force. Parker says the Cullen City Council rejected Ferguson three times when presented by Police Chief Fannie Rankin. So it’s unclear how he obtained his uniform or why he was even allowed to drive a city-issued marked police unit.
“He’s an unpaid employee. He was out there on his own time, and all the gear that I understand that he had on him was his. The mayor said that he had issued, since January, somewhere around 85 citations in the town,” Parker said.
The dog is still undergoing treatment, and Parker says it’s possible that the dog may need to be put down. As for Ferguson, he’s booked into the Bayou Dorcheat Correctional Facility on $25,000 bond.
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