HOLLYWOOD—Several witnesses, including actress Jena Malone from “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay” film and “Antebellum,” conducted a citizen’s arrest by chasing down a man who was violently beating a small dog on a leash on Sunset Boulevard near the 101 Freeway on Tuesday, April 5.
Onlookers driving by on Sunset Boulevard, allegedly saw the suspect “dragging and kicking” the dog – several of them got out of their cars and pursued the suspect to get him to stop. Video is circulating depicting witnesses chase, then beat the suspect for nearly a minute until authorities arrive.
The video depicts one man beating the suspect with a large stick. “What the f– are you doing?,” another man in the group yells.
“I pulled over and started chasing him, because that’s absolutely not ok,” Jena Malone told NBCLA. “I’m sorry that it ended in a brawl but the dog was going to die,” Malone later posted on Twitter. Malone was not involved in the beating of the suspect.
According to a witness involved in the beating, the suspect was “dragging [the dog] and kicking, kicking, kicking him and picking him up and slamming him,” he told NBCLA. “[The suspect] was talking about the dog disrespecting him,” the witness added.
Before police arrived, the suspect – who police have not yet identified – told an NBCLA cameraman that, “He’s my momma’s dog and he should obey me.” He did not believe that the dog was hurt.
Malone tweeted “[I] waited with the dog til another cop came to take them to the hospital. The dog was covered in filth and looked like it had not been taken care of for months.”
Malone later tweeted:
“After coming out of the hospital, the dog is ok but has a fractured rib, bone breaks in its hind legs and another fracture in its right paw.” In another update on Twitter, Malone adds, “the dog was chipped and back with his owner. The dog had been missing for a week. His name is Champion and is happily out of hospital and with his owner.”
According to Malone, the multiple surgeries will cost the owner – who is the suspect’s mom – more than she can afford, so a GoFundMe was started to help with the costs:
The suspect was arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty. The LAPD did not file charges against any of the onlookers responsible for beating and capturing the suspect. The name of the suspect has not yet been disclosed to the public.
