K-9 wounded during shootout awarded officer's ‘purple heart'

PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — A Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office dog who was struck during a May shootout with an armed robbery suspect has received the agency's "purple" heart.

Casper the K-9 was shot in one of his haunches May 12 in Jupiter in a crossfire that ended with the death of Phillip O’Shea, 46.

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Twelve hours earlier, deputies have said, O’Shea robbed a suburban West Palm Beach bar at about 4 a.m. and led deputies on a chase down Okeechobee Boulevard to an industrial area just west of Interstate 95, where he crashed his car, then began a shootout in which one deputy was hurt diving for cover.

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O’Shea fled and carjacked a woman’s vehicle near Palm Beach International Airport. That afternoon, deputies found him in Jupiter, leading to the shootout in a parking lot near the Wood Duck apartments on Military Trail south of Toney Penna Drive.

The dog later underwent surgery.

He received his purple heart Wednesday.

"This heroic furry friend has won the hearts of many," the sheriff's office said on Twitter.

Cox Media Group