Marisa Ong, Senior Counsel at Singleton Schreiber in Las Cruces, was featured in a KTEP News report, "Family Demands Answers After Border Patrol Agent Shoots and Kills Their Dog Inside Home" which was published on November 19, 2025.
The report details how a Border Patrol agent fatally shot a family dog inside a private home in El Paso’s Upper Valley after agents arrived to investigate a tip about alleged “alien smuggling,” a claim the homeowner denied. According to the segment, the homeowner cooperated fully and invited agents inside after securing his seven-year-old Rottweiler, Chop, in a bathroom and showing them exactly where the dog was confined.
Ms. Ong told KTEP that despite those precautions, an agent opened the bathroom door and later shot Chop from an estimated distance of 18 feet. The dog died from his injuries, and Border Patrol did not find any evidence of illegal activity at the residence. KTEP reported that the shooting remains under review by CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility.
Ms. Ong also raised questions about why an agent entered the residence alone, why the bathroom door was opened, and why the shot was fired from such a distance. She added that her client has filed an SF-95 claim, required in incidents involving injury or death caused by a federal employee, and is asking the El Paso District Attorney to consider animal-cruelty charges.
Addressing the incident and its impact on her client, Ms. Ong said:
“He saw the agent that had entered the house. He had his gun drawn. He pointed his gun at my client, and then he saw his dog, Chop, lying on the floor yelping in pain. It’s extremely against protocol for an agent to go by himself into a home. It creates a safety risk for the officer and for anyone on the scene. The bullet hole where Chop was shot is approximately 18 feet away from the bathroom. If Chop had lunged at the agent, you would assume the agent would have shot him in the bathroom. He’s extremely distraught. Chop was his best friend. It’s our hope there will be transparency and accountability so this never happens to another family again.”
