Lydia Nikac watched a North Carolina state trooper kill both of her dogs. A court has now ruled she can’t show anyone else what happened.
Recently, a three-judge panel of the North Carolina Court of Appeals unanimously rejected Ms. Nikac’s First Amendment challenge to a judge’s order barring her from sharing body camera footage of the October 2024 shooting. A professional dog trainer, she had called 911 after catching a man breaking into her car. Her two Belgian Malinois, Bonnie and Clyde, had the man cornered when Trooper Justin Maness arrived. According to the court’s opinion, the dogs were barking at the trooper. He told her to control them, then opened fire, killing both.
Under a 2016 state law, police body camera video in North Carolina is closed to the public by default. The panel found the trial judge acted within his discretion, noting that Ms. Nikac can ask for the footage’s release again later and is free to speak publicly about what it shows.
In Colorado, a fight over another dog ended very differently.
