Man Says Police Dog Mistakenly Attacked Him While Intruder He Was Fighting Off Escaped

A man from Eugene, Oregon suffered personal injuries when he fought off a home intruder to defend his mother and children and was bitten by a police dog when police mistook him for the prowler they had been chasing in the neighborhood.

According to 39-year-old Tim Crossan, he broke his hand on the intruder’s face while fighting. Police then entered and sent the dog after him and he was bitten through the left calf, thigh, and left buttock.

As the dog was attacking Crossan, he says the intruder escaped. He says he is upset the police have offered him no apology for the bites, which required him to go to the hospital.

On November 6, Eugene Police Chief Pete Kerns called the incident “unfortunate,” but called Crossan’s defense of his home “heroic.”