SWAT team couldn’t capture dogs that killed KC man, records show. So they left
Despite the presence of a SWAT team, K-9 officers and KC Pet Project officers, officials were unable to take control of five pit bulls that viciously attacked a Kansas City man one night last fall, killing him, according to recently released documents detailing the events of that night.
And although city ordinance allows officers to destroy dangerous dogs that pose a public threat, officers instead left the dogs in the fenced yard of their owner at the scene, those documents show.
However, when officers returned the next day — the pit bulls were gone. A patrol schedule was created to keep an eye out for them, but it didn’t start until four days later, documents newly obtained by The Star show.
The attack happened on Nov. 2, when Chris Culbertson was biking home and was attacked by five pit bulls who escaped their fenced-in yard at 3216 NE 80th St. in the Marlborough East neighborhood. He received over 500 stitches due to his wounds, and died four days later.
In April, father and son John Thibeaux Sr. and John Thibeaux Jr. were charged with one count of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, and one count of second-degree assault.
Over the course of five months following the attack, The Star submitted numerous records requests to the city and KC Pet Project asking for more information on what happened that night. Those documents, released last month, shed new light on what unfolded the night of the deadly attack, and just how much officials struggled to gain control of the situation.
These documents are part of a case view report, which includes eyewitness testimony from the KC Pet Project officers who responded to the scene, what they learned from police, as well as information on the one dog impounded and what happened to the victims. It also includes follow-ups, ending 11 days after the attack.
Dogs ripping catchpoles
According to the probable cause statement, police responded to the neighborhood at 9:50 p.m. that night, where they found Culbertson outside the fence being attacked by “numerous dogs.”
KC Pet Project said in a statement on May 22, that the Kansas City Police Department was in charge of the scene and led the investigation, while KC Pet Project worked as on-site animal control under police direction.
Officials used horns, sirens and lights to scare the dogs away from Culbertson, according to those KC Pet Project documents. Holly Lane, a neighbor who ran outside with a golf club to try to protect him, was also attacked and was able to run back inside for her own protection.
Officers witnessed the dogs going back behind the fence through holes large enough for them to pass through, according to court documents.
An animal service officer arrived at the scene around 11:45 p.m., after Culbertson and Lane were taken to the hospital. The animal service officer, a member of the city’s animal control, was informed by law enforcement that six aggressive dogs were inside the property with a lock on the front gate; one of them was tied to a tree and wasn’t involved in the incident, according to KC Pet Project’s incident report.
Police told the animal service officer that John Thibeaux Sr. was at the scene and had the key to the padlocked fence. The probable cause statement said he arrived shortly after the first attempt to capture the dogs, initially saying he lived there. After being informed of the attack, John Thibeaux Sr. allegedly recanted and said he didn’t live there, the dogs weren’t his and that everything belonged to his son. After calling John Thibeaux Jr., he told police only one dog belonged to his son — the rest were strays.
Officials waited for a warrant to seize the animals and then attempted to apprehend the pit bulls with the help of a SWAT team and K-9 officers, according to KC Pet Project documents. One officer described being able to put one red pit bull in the truck as the others were trying to attack through the fencing.
“… through another attempt to gain control of another Pitbull type canine, it and another Pitbull type canine forcibly grabbed my catchpole and ripped it out of my hands and into the yard,” the document reads.
A second animal service officer arrived on the scene, noting that there were one fire truck, one ambulance and three police cars present. The animal service officer described seeing multiple law enforcement officers walking around with shotguns.
The second animal service officer told police that KC Pet Project couldn’t take the dogs because of the locked gate. Police then asked to speak to their supervisor and executed a search warrant with the SWAT and K-9 teams.
“After the SWAT team used pepper spray on the dogs, they no longer were coming to the fence and we were unable to gain entry to the property safely and the scene was cleared with only one dog impounded,” the officer wrote in the KC Pet Project report.
According to Kansas City’s municipal code on impounding a dog who has bitten someone, the dog — if already deemed dangerous through the court process— should be immediately impounded and euthanized humanely. If the animal is deemed uncatchable, officials may kill the animal by other reasonable means if they continue to be a threat to people or domestic animals. According to the municipal code, tranquilizers can be used as a means of capture.
It is not clear, though, what the protocol should be immediately following an attack like the Culbertson one, where the dogs severely injure a person but have not been designated as dangerous by the courts.
Returning for the dogs
Deeming the animals too aggressive to capture safely, police and KC Pet Project left the scene that night with plans to return the next day with something to sedate them. But when they returned at 8 a.m., the five dogs were gone.
KC Pet Project Interim Chief Evan LaDue interviewed Lane about the attack and observed three to four tooth punctures on the back of Lane’s right leg, likely the entire length of the dog’s tooth, as well as a laceration on the back of her calf, according to the KC Pet Project report.
“Holly’s leg was wrapped with bandage, however blood still soaked through the bandages and actively ran down her leg,” the report said.
In the interview with police and KC Pet Project, Lane said that around two hours before they arrived that morning, she saw the owner park down at the far end of his property for a few minutes before leaving. She believed he had loaded up the dogs and left.
LaDue then spoke to a Kansas City police captain, who seemed to not know about the bite incident but said that an animal detective was assigned to it and would reach out to LaDue on Monday. Because the dogs were not believed to be present, KCPD said a warrant was not needed at the time.
While officers were still at the scene, John Thibeaux Jr. gave them verbal consent to inspect his property for the dogs, according to KC Pet Project documents. Officials found two wire kennels in the back bedroom containing nine pit bull puppies under the age of 4 months.
No other dogs were found on the property and officials cleared the scene once an older man, thought to be Thibeaux Sr., arrived and yelled at officers, according to the report.
Patrol schedules were then put into place to monitor the property from Nov. 6, the day Culbertson died, through Nov. 13. Officers had to observe the property for 15 minutes twice between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. and once between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. Any of the dogs seen from that property at large were to be immediately impounded.
The weekend after the patrol was initiated, several dogs matching the description of those involved in the attack were located roughly 2 miles from Thibeaux’s property, seemingly dumped, according to court documents. They were subsequently impounded and euthanized, including the quarantined dog, according to KC Pet Project.
Neither the prosecutor’s office or KC Pet Project could confirm or comment on if these dogs were the same as the ones involved in the attack, citing the ongoing case.
“This action was taken in compliance with applicable laws to protect our community,” KC Pet Project said in a statement.
Kansas City’s City Council voted unanimously in March for city employees to take on direct responsibility of animal control. The change was precipitated by complaints about KC Pet Project’s perceived lax enforcement of the city’s animal welfare ordinances culminating with the fatal dog attack last fall.
This story was originally published May 30, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
