On Monday, Sept 26, 2016, Officer Teeter completed his assignment and returned his mount, MC Hammer, to the Denver Police Mounted Patrol Barn. Once MC Hammer was unsaddled and tied, Officer Teeter became distracted and neglected to return to finish untacking MC Hammer. Officer Teeter left the barn. MC Hammer remained tied and without food or water.

MC Hammer was not discovered until 16 hours later, at 6:15 am the following morning. After being fed and watered, MC Hammer displayed signs of pain and was taken to the Littleton Equine Medical Center, where he was diagnosed with colic. This episode of colic was determined unrecoverable, so the Department made the difficult decision to euthanize MC Hammer.

In response to his negligence, the Department has only docked Officer Teeter one paid vacation day. It is a crime in Colorado to leave an animal without food or water, even if it was unintentional.

During the disciplinary evaluation, the Department itself acknowledged that "[t]hough not intentional on his part, Officer Teeter’s forgetfulness exposed a live animal to cruel and extreme conditions."

It does not matter that causation cannot be found for MC Hammer’s death, because it is clear that Officer Teeter neglected to provide food or water, which is an independent crime.

An officer cannot allow himself to be “distracted by paperwork” and forget to provide basic care for a living being. We simply cannot afford an officer’s “forgetfulness” to be an excuse for the Department’s negligent actions that result in emotional despair and monetary burden on the public.

Additionally, if MC Hammer were a police dog instead of a police horse, Officer Teeter would be required to pay a mandatory minimum fine of $1000 and restitution to the department, including any veterinary expenses related to the incident and replacement costs for a new police animal. Because this incident involves a police animal, the Department should look to this statute as a guiding principle.

It is outrageous and irresponsible that the Department should treat the loss of life, an officer’s partner, and Department property with only the fine of one day’s salary. 

We demand that Officer Teeter be removed from mounted patrol.

We also demand that the Department require Officer Teeter to make restitution for all expenses resulting from MC Hammer’s treatment for colic and ultimate euthanasia. The taxpayers should not have to shoulder the cost of paying MC Hammer’s veterinary and euthanasia bills or the cost of a replacement mount. We cannot afford an officer’s “forgetfulness” to be an excuse for the Department’s negligent actions.