Officer Cleared in Shooting of Donkey "Heehaw

Officer Cleared in Shooting of Donkey “Heehaw

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Legal Clearance for Cedartown Officer in Donkey Shooting

The investigation into the death of “Heehaw,” a pet donkey whose killing by a police officer sparked a federal civil rights lawsuit, has concluded with a finding of no criminal liability. District Attorney Jaeson Smith of the Tallapoosa Judicial Circuit announced today that Cedartown Police officer Trenton Garner will not face criminal charges for the incident, which occurred during a late-night search for a missing child earlier this year.

Local 3 News reported that the District Attorney’s decision rests on the legal standard of reasonable force. According to Smith, the officer’s actions were considered justifiable given the circumstances on the night of August 30, 2026. The search, which involved multiple law enforcement agencies, K-9 units, and aerial drone support, was focused on locating a missing 12-year-old girl in Polk County.

DA declines charges against officer in fatal shooting of Heehaw the donkey

The Sequence of Events in the Pasture

The confrontation took place shortly after midnight. Body-camera footage, which has since become a central piece of evidence in related civil litigation, shows the donkey approaching officers. According to the filing obtained by CBS News Atlanta, Officer Garner can be heard telling a dispatch operator immediately after the shooting that the animal was “trying to attack us.”

Officer Garner’s legal team, led by attorney J. Scott Key, has argued that the footage shows the animal moving within a body length of another officer before the fatal shot was fired. The defense maintains that Garner acted out of a reasonable belief that his colleague was in immediate danger of bodily harm. Prior to the discharge of the firearm, an officer had reportedly attempted to use the electrical arc of a Taser to deter the animal, but the donkey continued to advance.

Officer Cleared in Shooting of Donkey "Heehaw
Photo: cbsnews.com

Owner Files Civil Rights Lawsuit over Donkey Shooting

While the criminal investigation is closed, the matter remains active in federal court. Hannah Michelle Israel, the owner of Heehaw, filed a civil rights lawsuit alleging that officers trespassed onto her property without a warrant or permission. Her complaint characterizes the donkey as “young, small, and tranquil,” asserting that he posed no threat to the officers on the scene.

The District Attorney’s report, however, leaned on evidence of the animal's behavior prior to the August incident to support the conclusion that the officer’s fear was reasonable. Smith cited reports from a neighbor who claimed the donkey had previously bitten a small child at a camp in July and exhibited aggressive behavior toward visitors. These accounts were used to support the assertion that the officer’s reaction was not motivated by malice, a necessary component for proving a criminal charge of aggravated cruelty to animals under Georgia law.

The Broader Implications for Law Enforcement

While the criminal case is now resolved, the City of Cedartown has maintained a position of silence regarding the pending civil litigation, citing the ongoing nature of the legal proceedings.

The federal lawsuit, filed in Rome, Georgia, seeks compensatory and punitive damages for the loss of the animal. As of early November, the court has yet to rule on the motion to dismiss the lawsuit, which Garner’s defense filed in October. For the owners of the animal, the legal path forward remains focused on the claims of constitutional violations and property rights, even as the criminal liability question has been settled by the District Attorney’s office.

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