Jacksonville, FL – A U.S. Marine veteran is preparing to sue the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) after a controversial incident in which her 10-year-old German Shepherd and registered service dog was shot three times by a responding officer.
The veteran, Jaimie Phillips, says she called the police for help—yet ended up with her dog bleeding out, a bullet wound in her own leg, and a law enforcement system that she feels turned on her instead of protecting her.
The November 15th encounter began when Phillips, out with her daughter and dog, called 911 to report a confrontation with a stranger near her home in the Riverside neighborhood. She also disclosed during the call that she was legally armed with a concealed carry pistol—something Florida law fully allows and something she was up front about.
Instead of de-escalating the situation, Phillips says the arriving officer, Milan Jones, approached her aggressively. Her dog, Milo, reportedly lunged at the officer and bit his leg. Seconds later, Milo was shot three times. Bodycam footage shows Phillips standing just feet from the officer’s weapon with her daughter nearby as the shots rang out.
“I told him he could take my gun and let me secure my dog,” said Phillips. “He didn’t listen. I had my hands up. I called them for help, and they came in hot, like I was the threat.”
Phillips says Milo is a PTSD service dog she got while transitioning out of the Marine Corps in 2014. Despite presenting paperwork and witness testimony, JSO says they have not verified the dog’s service animal status.
The officer was later cleared of wrongdoing after an internal investigation, with the board concluding he faced a “perfect storm”—an armed citizen and an aggressive dog. [how are the two the same?] They accepted Officer Jones’ reasoning that he feared being incapacitated and potentially shot by Phillips, despite no signs she ever reached for her weapon.
Interestingly, there were no visible injuries documented on Officer Jones beyond a torn pant leg—no photos of broken skin or a bite wound.
Who’s Really at Fault?
Let’s break this down:
- A law-abiding, armed citizen calls for help.
- She informs dispatch she is carrying.
- Her trained service dog reacts to an officer’s aggression.
- The dog is shot three times. The owner is struck by a ricochet. The daughter is nearby.
- The officer is cleared, but no full video has been released yet.
We’ve seen this before—lawful gun owners being treated like threats simply for being armed. Add a barking dog to the mix, and suddenly, the civilian becomes the enemy. If JSO had followed de-escalation protocols or simply accepted Phillips’ offer to secure the weapon and the dog, this might have ended peacefully.
Even the officer admitted, in hindsight, it could have been handled differently.
So, AmmoLand News readers:
- Was this a justified use of force, or a failure of police training and judgment?
- Was Phillips targeted because she was legally armed?
- And if Milo had been a lapdog instead of a German Shepherd, would the outcome have been the same?
Let us know what you think in the comments.
Editor’s Note: As always, AmmoLand News stands by lawful gun owners, our veterans, and the right to due process. This incident raises serious questions about how law enforcement engages with the very people they swear to protect—especially those exercising their constitutional rights.
CPRC: The Many Ways Concealed Carry Permitees Enhance Public Safety
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