Trial expected for 76-year-old man who police say shot pit bull in Plainville

A man who police say shot a pit bull in Plainville is fighting the charges against him.

John Niedzwiecki, 76, of Plainville formally declared his intention to pursue a jury trial this week in New Britain Superior Court, judicial records indicate.

Niedzwiecki, who is free from custody, faces charges of first-degree wounding or killing an animal, unlawful discharge of a firearm and injuring a companion animal.

Niedzwiecki’s trial does not yet have a start date, court records show.

According to Plainville police, Niedzwiecki was outside his home on May 10, 2021, when he encountered a pit bull he said was 30 to 40 feet away and barking at him. The animal slowly inched closer to him, the warrant said.

Police said Niedzwiecki was able to safely get into his home before coming back outside, now armed with a rifle. The dog, which was now about 10 feet away, continued barking aggressively, the arrest warrant in the case said.

Niedzwiecki then fired one round into the pit bull’s chest before the wounded animal ran into a wooded area, according to the warrant.

Niedzwiecki told police his mother lost both her hands in 2015 and nearly died during an encounter on the same property with a different pit bull. That, combined with his 25 years of military training, “were factors in how he reacted,” he told police, according to the warrant.

Police were able to find the injured pit bull and get it to a veterinarian. It suffered internal bleeding in its chest cavities and needed air removed from both cavities, the warrant said. The medical bills totaled over $4,000, police wrote in the warrant.

Police noted in the warrant that they believe Niedzwiecki was not in any imminent danger once he was able to make it into his home.

“A reasonable person would have remained in their house or dialed 911 to request police assistance,” police wrote in the affidavit.