A Livermore man is sitting behind bars today after he was spotted this morning hurling a chihuahua from a motel balcony and then pointing a gun at a guest who confronted him about the animal cruelty.
A guest at Motel 6 on
Lassen Road saw 39-year-old Michael Hamby toss the dog from a second-floor balcony, Sgt. John Hurd told media outlets.
The dog landed paws-first on the ground.
After seeing this act of cruelty, the motel guest picked a fight with Hamby over why he had thrown the dog, Hurd said. The fight became heated and a motel clerk intervened, telling the two guests to go to their own rooms. Shortly after, the guest got a knock on his door, and when he opened it, "Hamby was standing at the door and pointed a gun at him," Hurd said.
Hamby ran off, and when officers arrived they recognized the suspect as someone they had arrested back in April on suspicion of assault, child endangerment, and possession of an illegal firearm. Since the suspect had a violent past, police decided to call in the East Bay Tactical Team, the combined SWAT team of the Livermore and Pleasanton police.
The cops evacuated the entire motel and surrounding businesses before bursting into Hamby's room, which was completely empty. However, police spotted him near the motel and took him into custody at about 7:20 a.m. He was and booked on suspicion of felony animal cruelty.
Thankfully, the dog wasn't injured, police said.
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