A man walking two small dogs was tased by a federal park ranger after refusing an order to leash his animals.
A man walking two small dogs in the Rancho Corral de Tierra open space near Montara got the jolt of his life after defiantly refusing a park ranger’s order to leash him animals.
Witnesses told the Half Moon Bay Review the National Park Service ranger stopped the man late Sunday afternoon near the southern edge of McNee Ranch State Park. When an argument escalated over the off-leash dogs, the “defiant” man was heard telling the ranger, “are you going to arrest me?”
After the man turned to leave, the female ranger drew her Taser weapon and fired, witnesses said. Nearby resident John Bartlett told the Review what happened next:
“Next thing I heard was what I thought was a pistol shot … He let out a cry of agony as he fell on his back.”
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area took over management of the Rancho Corral area last November. Many areas of the GGNRA — not unlike Rancho Corral — have been traditionally used by dog owners as off-leash playgrounds.
A park service spokesman told the Chron that the man — identified as Gary Hesterberg of Montara — initially gave a fake name, and was arrested for on suspicion of failing to obey a lawful order, having dogs off leash and knowingly providing false information.
Jesse Garnier is the editor and founder of SFBay. A Mission District native, he also teaches journalism as associate professor at San Francisco State University.
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