The donkey, named HeeHaw, was owned by Hannah Israel and kept at Elsberry Riding and Farm, a business offering pony rides and petting zoo experiences. According to Israel’s Facebook post, officers from the Cedartown Police Department and the Polk County Police Department entered her pasture at 12:45am without permission. ‘At 12:45am cops entered my pasture searching for a missing person WITHOUT permission or warning and shot and killed my bottle raised BABY donkey,’ she wrote.
Israel described HeeHaw as having been raised in her home and accustomed to meeting strangers through petting zoo work. ‘They claimed he ran up to them braying and they thought they were in danger and shot and killed him after trying to taze him,’ she wrote. ‘HeeHaw was raised in the house and did petting zoos he never knew a stranger. And was shot and killed in his OWN pasture for doing what donkeys do. Alerting to a stranger.’
Cedartown Police Donkey Shooting Triggers Dual Investigation
The Cedartown Police Department confirmed that the officer involved has been placed on paid administrative leave while investigations proceed, and stated that neither the department nor any other city department could comment further, according to news.com.au, which published the department’s official statement.
Cedartown Police Chief Jamie Newsome also contacted the Georgia Department of Agriculture’s law enforcement division, which has launched a separate investigation into the circumstances of the shooting, Police1 reports. The missing child at the centre of the original search was subsequently located safely.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office clarified it played no part in the incident. The shooting involved officers from the Polk County Police Department and the Cedartown Police Department; the latter’s officers were on the property at the request of the former, Fox 5 Atlanta reported. None of the officers involved has been publicly identified.
HeeHaw was approximately one year old at the time of the shooting.
Legal Action, a Foundation, and a GoFundMe Exceeding $131,000
Israel has retained a lawyer and confirmed she intends to pursue legal action. Her GoFundMe, established in the immediate aftermath of the shooting to cover legal costs, has since raised more than $131,000, a figure reported by Fox 5 Atlanta (an earlier Newsweek report placed the total at nearly $120,000, reflecting a different point in time).
Israel subsequently updated the GoFundMe to clarify that her lawyer is not drawing on the raised funds. She invited donors who had contributed specifically for legal fees to dispute the charge and seek a refund. ‘This is not a pay day for us,’ she wrote, according to Newsweek. ‘Heehaws life has no monetary value.’ Israel said the money will instead support the farm’s animals and upkeep, and she plans to establish a foundation in HeeHaw’s memory.
Israel’s attorney has also sent at least one cease-and-desist letter to a third party, accusing the recipient of ‘relentless, inappropriate and defamatory conduct’ in connection with alleged online harassment directed at Israel following the animal’s death.
The Cedartown police donkey shooting has drawn wide attention in part because incidents of officers shooting dogs on or near private property have generated substantial civil litigation in the United States over many years, with courts awarding large damages in several cases. Encounters with donkeys, animals that vocalise loudly and move quickly toward unfamiliar figures, present a distinct set of circumstances that neither the department’s internal review nor the Agriculture Department’s investigation has yet addressed publicly.
The Georgia Department of Agriculture’s law enforcement investigation remains open. Its findings, and any decision on whether to refer the matter to prosecutors, will determine whether the Cedartown police donkey shooting results in criminal or disciplinary consequences beyond the officer’s current paid suspension.