Man Pleads Not Guilty to Charges in Death of Police Dog

An Oxnard man accused of fatally stabbing a police dog pleaded not guilty in Ventura County Superior Court on Wednesday to charges related to the animal’s death.

Through his attorney, 20-year-old Timothy Knight denied exhibiting a weapon while resisting arrest, violating probation and harming a police dog. Knight hid behind a partition to avoid being photographed by the media during his brief court appearance.

Defense attorney Robert Sandbach said after the hearing that his client is distraught over the death of Rudy, a 4-year-old Belgian Malinois, who brought Knight down during a confrontation with Oxnard police April 19.

“He is very upset,” Sandbach said. “Everyone in the community is upset by Rudy’s death.”

According to police, the stabbing occurred after Officer J.R. Perez, who was on patrol with Rudy and looking for a suspect, stopped a car in which Knight was riding to determine if he was the same man.

Knight, who has been in and out of jail for various misdemeanor crimes in recent years, allegedly brandished a double-edged diving knife at the officer, authorities said. As Knight began to run away, Perez ordered Rudy to subdue him.

The dog was stabbed once in the left lower chest, said Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Cheryl Temple. Rudy was taken to a pet emergency hospital in Ventura, but could not be saved.

Rudy was the first Oxnard Police Department dog to die in the line of duty. A memorial service last week at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center drew several hundred uniformed officers and residents who were touched by accounts of the dog’s death.

While Sandbach expressed remorse for the dog, he also urged the public not to jump to conclusions about his client’s role in the incident. He noted that Oxnard police have been criticized for a spate of officer-involved shootings in the past year and questioned whether officers acted properly in Knight’s arrest. If they didn’t, he said, there could be self-defense issues.

“I think we would be remiss if we didn’t look at whether the officer’s use of force was appropriate,” said Sandbach, who plans to review the police dispatch tapes to determine what happened before Perez set Rudy on his client. .

In addition to the criminal charges, Knight faces allegations that he wielded a knife. If convicted on all counts, Knight faces up to six years, eight months in state prison and two felony strikes on his criminal record. A preliminary hearing is set for June 10. Knight remains in jail in lieu of $510,000 bail.