A bull bound for the slaughterhouse was instead killed after charging at a police officer in Raynham, Massachusetts, Monday, officials said.
The enraged bull had already caused a car crash on Interstate 495 nearby, sending one driver to the hospital, according to Raynham police.
The bull made it into Lake Nippenicket, where it spotted police on shore and started swimming aggressively toward them — the agency said the owners of the farm from which the bull escaped had warned them it would likely need to be put down, not captured, because of its aggression.
The officer fired his rifle at the animal while it was in the water, and again while it was back on land, eventually hitting it in the leg and keeping anyone else from getting hurt, according to police. The bull had to be euthanized, which the owner of the farm, a hunter with a legal gun, took care of.
"I want to commend our brave officers who put themselves in harm's way to make sure that a bad situation did not get worse," Raynham Police Chief David LaPlante said in a statement. "Facing a charging 1,300-pound bull is not something you go into your shift thinking is going to happen, but our officers were able to respond and effectively handle the situation and prevent further injury and destruction."
Police initially said the bull was loose in the area of Elm Street East and the highway, urging people to "avoid the area if possible" as they, Massachusetts State Police and other first responders tried to help the animal's owner get it back. After about an hour, police said the bull was located and the threat neutralized.
The incident began about 9 a.m., when multiple 911 calls were made about a large, black bull running down Jennings Drive, police said. Workers at Mathieu Farms were loading the bull into a truck that was headed for the slaughterhouse, but it became frightened and broke away, through electrified fences and over a 6-foot berm.
The 1,300-lb. animal made it onto I-495, causing a three-vehicle crash, according to police. They didn't immediately have the condition of the driver who was hurt.
The bull then headed into the woods and the water of the nearby lake, which led up to the bull charging at the officer. Bodycam video released by Raynham police shows the enraged animal charging at several people as the officer fires a rifle.
The bull was finally euthanized by the farm's owner, who used his hunting rifle, according to police, who noted that the owner and staff of the farm cooperated the entire time.
