Man who shot dog on Savary Island gets probation

A Savary Island man has been given two years of probation after the fatal shooting of a family dog that divided the small community.

Eric Ferreira, 52, entered a guilty plea in February to discharging a weapon that killed a three-year-old Australian Shepherd named Maybe.

“Mr. Ferreira’s actions were unjustified, imprudent, careless, illegal and wrong,” said Judge Nancy Adams in her reasons for sentencing. “He lost control of himself. He discharged a firearm in a fit of rage without thinking.”

Ferreira also “sowed dissent in the community by spreading false information about Maybe and what he had done,” said Adams.

On Feb. 3, 2017, Maybe was out on an off-leash walk with owner Darren Claydon when it disappeared out of view.

Claydon heard it barking and was headed in the direction of the barks when he heard what he later realized was a gun shot. He saw Ferreira emerge from the bushes and asked him if he saw Maybe. Ferreira said he saw the dog heading east 10 minutes earlier, even though he had just shot the dog.

While Claydon, partner Hazel Hollingdale, and other residents mounted a frantic search for Maybe, Ferreira buried the dog at a work site.

Later, after Maybe’s partial remains were found, Ferreira admitted to another island resident and police that he shot the dog “in a fit of rage” after seeing the dog bite a deer’s stomach.

In the judgment, the judge said Crown had submitted it was not in a position to refute Ferreira’s story and that “at the end of the day, the only available evidence is Mr. Ferreira’s version of how and why he shot the dog.”

Crown noted Ferreira’s admission came only after a 10-day search was completed and the dog’s partial remains were found. In the reasons for sentencing, the judge noted Ferreira was an active member of the community with no criminal record and has accepted responsibility for the shooting and the lies he told.

Some residents said the incident made them feel unsafe and raised concerns about the safety of pets and children due to Ferreira’s “violent and impulsive action,” according to a community impact statement from 27 households read aloud in Powell River provincial court.

Ferreira’s deceptions divided the close-knit community, said the statement, sowing feelings of distrust and loss of safety.

In the written judgment posted online in April, two months after she delivered her oral judgment, Adams said she hopes the judgment would quell rumours, clarify inconsistencies and heal the rift among island residents.

Claydon said Maybe’s death has affected his job as a taxi driver and his interactions with residents. Hollingdale said she experienced anxiety, depression, and PTSD over finding Maybe’s partial remains and seeing a bullet hole in its head.

The judge sentenced Ferreira to two years’ probation. He is ordered to avoid contact with Claydon, Hollingdale and Claydon’s parents, and to pay $2,000 restitution to Claydon and a $2,000 donation to the B.C. SPCA.

He is also prohibited from possessing or transporting firearms on the island for two years.

Claydon and Hollingdale, who wanted the case to go to trial with the original charge of killing or injuring an animal against Ferreira, said he got off easy.

“It was a pretty light sentence,” said Claydon. “I don’t think a man who drives around with a rifle he uses when he sees black should really own weapons.”

The couple is now working with their MP on legislative proposals to strengthen animal cruelty investigations, including requiring mandatory co-investigations from RCMP and SPCA.