On 29 July 2008 a sheriff’s SWAT team raided the home of Berwyn Heights mayor Cheye Calvo in Prince George’s County, Maryland.[1] Police in Arizona had intercepted a parcel addressed to Calvo’s wife containing 32 pounds (about 14.5 kilograms) of marijuana, and undercover officers delivered it to the house before storming in when Calvo brought it inside.[2][1] Deputies shot dead Calvo’s two Labrador retrievers, Payton and Chase, one of them as it ran away, and held Calvo and his mother-in-law handcuffed at gunpoint for hours.[3][2][1]
Calvo, who had just returned from walking the dogs, said deputies burst through the front door without knocking and refused to show a warrant when he asked for one.[3] Police said the officers felt threatened by the dogs and defended the entry, while the county police chief called the family most likely innocent victims but did not apologize.[3][2] On 8 August police cleared the Calvos of any wrongdoing, calling them innocent victims caught up in a trafficking ring that mailed parcels to unknowing recipients.[1] Calvo asked the federal government to investigate the raid.[3]
