TULLAHOMA, Tenn. – Franklin County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Troy Parsons wasn’t planning on bringing a dog home when he showed up for work on Sept. 13, but by the time his shift ended, there was no doubt about where the German Shepherd, now known as Jerry Lee, would be spending the rest of his days.
“He’s part of the family now,” Parsons said. The dog’s new name is a nod to the 1989 movie “K-9,” in which James Belushi is partnered up with a German Shepherd named Jerry Lee.
Parsons was dispatched to a field at the end of Hasty Lane that Saturday morning to respond to a report of an animal shot in the neck. When he arrived at the location, Parsons found a gravely injured German Shepherd lying in the grass.
“I’m surprised he even made it,” the deputy said. “It’s a gruesome wound.”
The call Parsons responded to was actually the second report the sheriff’s department had received about the incident. Deputies responded to the initial report the night before, but were unable to locate the dog in the dark. Parsons estimated that Jerry Lee had been lying in the field for approximately 12 hours before he arrived on the scene.