Teen killed as bullet fired by US cops on charging dog bounces off concrete

The 17-year-old from Palmdale in Los Angeles county died when he was hit by a bullet that apparently bounced on the concrete and hit him in the chest.

When a dog that had already bit one of them charged a group of deputies, two of them opened fire. Authorities in Palmdale in Los Angeles county say they did not see the teenage boy standing some 30 feet behind, who was struck down by a bullet that apparently bounced on the concrete and hit him in the chest.

Police in Palmdale in Los Angeles county shot at a dog that had bitten a police officer, but the bulled killed a boy instead. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The 17-year-old, who had helped to restrain the dog after the first bite, died at a hospital an hour later on Thursday, turning what began as a mere early-morning noise complaint into a freak tragedy.

The Los Angeles County deputy who was bitten by the dog was also hit by a bullet fragment but survived. He was treated at a hospital and released.

The dog, which survived the shooting, was later euthanised.