The Associated Press
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.- A man who shot a police dog during a burglary has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Robert Lee Cooke was found guilty in April of maliciously wounding of a police dog over the shooting that fatally injured the German shepherd, Igno. He also was convicted for a firearms violation.
Cooke was left paralyzed from the waist down after exchanging gunfire in October 2004 with officer Andy Gluba, who was Igno’s handler.
“I do feel like I’ve been punished already,” Cooke said Tuesday during his sentencing. “I lost half my body. My life and attitude is forever changed.”
His lawyers said they planned to appeal the sentence. Five of the 10 years was shooting the dog and the rest was for the firearms violation. Cooke also was ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution.
Ingo had to be put down after being shot, and Gluba told the court his children had to undergo counseling after the dog’s death.
“We were a well-known, intimate team and he was taken away from me that night,” Gluba said. “It basically turned my world upside down.”
See related: