Coker Man Charged With Shooting Neighbor’s Puppy Last Month

A Tuscaloosa County man was arrested and charged with animal cruelty after he allegedly shot a neighbor's puppy in the face last month.

According to court documents filed on Tuesday, the shooting happened at about 5:45 p.m. on the evening of August 26th.

The deposition alleges that the dog, a 5-month-old German Shorthaired Pointer, was shot in the face by Nicholas Selman outside his home in Coker.

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Selman had reportedly complained about the dog escaping their fence and agreed to let the matter rest until the dog's owners could fix the problem that weekend. Still, on Tuesday night, as they ate dinner, the neighboring family heard a gunshot and ran outside to discover the puppy had been shot for getting out of their yard.

The canine was shot in the face, resulting in an entry and exit wound in her face and a grazing bullet wound on her back, according to the police report filed this week.

At the time the report was made, the dog was being treated at a local veterinarian, although the victims told police they had to surrender the puppy due to the high cost of her medical care.

Police with the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Animal Control division have been investigating since the incident, and on Friday, they arrested 23-year-old Selman and charged him with cruelty to animals, a Class A misdemeanor.

Bond was set at $300 and Selman has been released from the Tuscaloosa County Jail at the time of this report. It is generally the policy of the Tuscaloosa Thread to not share the mugshots of suspects who are accused of misdemeanor offenses.

For other coverage of crime & courts in west Alabama, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.