Man ‘grossly disfigured’ by K-9 wins $1.35 million, lawyers say. ‘This isn’t justice’

A man who was bitten and “grossly disfigured” by a sheriff K-9 in 2020 has won $1.35 million in a settlement with Sonoma County, California, his lawyers said.

Jason Anglero-Wyrick, 38, said he still suffers from nerve damage and is on disability.

Deputies with the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office responded to Anglero-Wyrick’s home on April 4, 2020, and held him and his fiancee at gunpoint, according to a lawsuit filed on March 22, 2021.

At one point, a deputy tased Anglero-Wyrick, and he fell to the ground, the lawsuit says. A deputy then released his K-9, Vader, and the dog “clamped his jaws down” on Anglero-Wyrick’s right calf, the lawsuit says.

Anglero-Wyrick told McClatchy News that the attack lasted from 90 seconds to two minutes, but it “felt like forever.”

“The dog was eating me,” he said. “I could feel its tongue licking the blood up.”

The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to a request for comment from McClatchy News on Feb. 13. A spokesperson for Sonoma County did not respond to a request for comment.

‘Your dog is eating my leg!’

After the K-9 bit him, Anglero-Wyrick was taken to the hospital while handcuffed in an ambulance, he said. He was then handcuffed to a hospital bed until family members paid bail.

He remained in the hospital for a little more than three weeks and underwent multiple surgeries, he said.

The sheriff’s office said in a news release that deputies responded on April 4, 2020, to a report that Anglero-Wyrick had pointed a gun at someone before driving away. When they arrived at his house, they were met by his “uncooperative family members,” the release says.

When he and a woman came out of the house, they were “confrontational and refused repeated commands from deputies,” the release says. Deputies warned them that the K-9 might be used, according to the sheriff’s office.

One deputy used a taser on Anglero-Wyrick as he started to walk back toward his house, and another deputy “simultaneously released K-9 Vader,” the release says.

“Vader bit him on the right leg but he continued to kick with his left leg,” deputies said. “After a struggle, deputies were ultimately able to handcuff Anglero-Wyrick.”

He was charged with felony violation of parole and felony resisting arrest, according to the release.

The lawsuit says the deputy who released the K-9 gave no warning and shouted “Good boy! Good boy!” as the dog clamped down on Anglero-Wyrick’s leg.

The dog “began pulling and twisting and shaking its head, tearing open the deep puncture wounds” as Anglero-Wyrick screamed in pain, the complaint says. The deputy also pulled on the dog’s collar, which lifted both the dog and Anglero-Wyrick’s leg off the ground, “causing further injury,” the lawsuit says.

“Please! Your dog is eating my leg!” Anglero-Wyrick screamed, according to the lawsuit.

The dog released its grasp after 90 seconds, at which point a deputy kneeled on Anglero-Wyrick’s back, the lawsuit says. Deputies also tried to prevent Anglero-Wyrick’s 15-year-old stepdaughter from filming the incident on her cellphone, and one pointed a taser at her, the lawsuit says.

The Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office moved to dismiss the charges against Anglero-Wyrick on June 2, 2020, according to the lawsuit.

‘This isn’t justice’

The $1.35 million settlement was finalized on Dec. 8, 2022, according to Anglero-Wyrick’s attorneys.

But Anglero-Wyrick said he doesn’t even want the money.

“It’s not over,” he said. “This isn’t justice.”

For him, justice would mean the deputy that released his K-9 on him getting fired. It would also mean an overhaul of what he says is a broken system, so similar incidents won’t happen again.

“They threw some money at me, and I’m supposed to be happy about it,” he said. “That’s not how it works. I’m tired of things like this happening to me or people that look like me.”

Anglero-Wyrick, a construction foreman, said he is out of work and on disability. Because of the nerve damage in his leg, he often can’t feel where he’s stepping, and his leg rolls, making him prone to falls.

The dog left a hole “as big as a baseball” in his leg, and it’s still “grossly disfigured,” the lawsuit says.

Anglero-Wyrick also said he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and spent a lot of time isolating himself from friends and family. He said he can’t read or watch the news because of all the stories about Black people being killed, beaten and harassed by police.

But he said he has hope that his daughters — who are 18, 15 and 11 — one day won’t have to live in a world with so much injustice.

“The next generation is really going to be the change,” he said.

This story was originally published February 13, 2023 at 6:20 PM with the headline "Man ‘grossly disfigured’ by K-9 wins $1.35 million, lawyers say. ‘This isn’t justice’."