A Cedartown police officer who shot and killed a miniature donkey during a search for a missing child in Polk County will not face criminal charges, according to a report released by Tallapoosa Judicial Circuit District Attorney Jaeson Smith.

The incident occurred shortly after midnight on August 30, when officers were searching for a missing 12-year-old girl in a rural area of Polk County. During the search, officers entered a fenced pasture where they encountered a miniature donkey named HeeHaw.

Cedartown Police Officer Trenton Garner fired a single shot, killing the animal. According to the district attorney’s report, officers believed the donkey posed an immediate threat after it approached them while they were searching the property.

The 12-page report details the investigation, including body-camera footage, witness interviews, dispatch records and findings from the Georgia Department of Agriculture.

Smith concluded that Garner reasonably believed another officer was in danger when he fired the shot. The report states that officers initially backed away from the approaching donkey and that another officer attempted to use a Taser before Garner fired.

However, the district attorney’s findings differ from an earlier assessment by a Georgia Department of Agriculture investigator, who believed the officer’s actions violated criminal statutes.

Smith questioned portions of that investigation, including how the investigator evaluated the officers’ perception of danger and witness statements concerning the donkey’s previous behavior.

The donkey’s owner, Hannah Israel, disputes the officer’s account, maintaining that HeeHaw was friendly, accustomed to people and had never displayed aggressive behavior. Other witnesses interviewed during the investigation described previous incidents in which the animal allegedly behaved aggressively.

Although the district attorney has determined that criminal charges are not warranted, the legal dispute surrounding the shooting is far from over.

Israel has filed a federal civil lawsuit alleging that officers entered her fenced property without permission or a warrant and that the shooting violated her constitutional rights. The lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages.

Attorneys representing Israel have challenged the district attorney’s findings and say they intend to continue pursuing accountability through the courts.

Garner has asked a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that he acted to protect another officer from what he reasonably perceived as an immediate threat.

The district attorney’s decision concludes the criminal review of the shooting, but the separate civil case remains unresolved.