Yes get your suspect but stop shooting ppl's dogs! The dog was probably just barking at them and the other ppl prob let him out in the yard to get him out of the way. Thank god Melissa's dog walker was at her house or her dog probably would of been shot too!!!! As far as this reads this person was taken in for questioning not arrested...while i hope they got the right guy because this is a truly sad and heinous murder. I can't help to be pissed off for police total disrespect for an animal's life and that even if this man is arrested and guilty...there are innocent ppl also living there...a child for Christ sakes in which this dog was prob a family pet...not enough they are prob shocked and distraught that someone they're living with is being questioned for murder, their home being surrounded,ram sacked, their personal items gone through but hey lets kill the dog too! Sorry but police need to get it together I read too many stories where officers just shoot ppl's dogs and always "claim" the dog charged and witnesses will say the dog was only barking, pepper spray or asking the ppl to restrain the dog would of sufficed!!! That child is gonna be traumatic

Gotta be traumatic for the child living there...got cut off. I wanna jump for joy they got hopefully this psycho off the street but seriously the dog things pisses me off!

Seriously stfu about the dog. People have such crappy priorities.

I agree with the person about the pet! The cops love to hurt the animals just because they run out to protect their family or are scared! The dog didnt so anything out of normalcy but why shoot the animal? The police should be chargedd as well for animal cruelty! The guy who did this crime is the one who needed the bullet not the dog!

You people are pathetic. Nobody has ever tried to sick their dog on police. They should just wait for animal control? A woman was brutally murdered and your concerned about the potential killers dog possibly being shot. It says there is no word on I'd the sf was shot. It people like you 2 that are wrong with this world. More concerned about an animal than a person

I am quite sure that the police were more concerned about getting brutal murderer off the street than the life of an animal. What if the suspect sent the dong out as a ruse to escape out another door or go get a weapon? Then the police would potentially have a hostage situation or a suspect that was on the run. Although they are calling him a person of interest, they have video of him stalking his victim following her into her house, driving away from the scene and then getting a call for the fire. He is not just a person of interest he is a murderer. Thank the police the next time you see them for working 12 hour shifts in freezing temps dealing with every scumbag that walks the face of the earth because that's exactly what they do. Ozzie and Harruet don't usually need the police because they are law abiding citizens and don't cause trouble.

The cops are going into a situation where they could have an armed suspect trying to flee the house using the dog as a distraction. Their lives are on the line and they have to make split second decisions, they did the right thing. What give you the right to say the cops love to hurt animals? Most of these men and women have pets at home but more importantly they have families to go home to! You an idiot if you think a dogs life is more important then a humans. If I had to make a split second dicision I would shoot my own dog in that situation! Get over it, its more important that they may have gotten the man who killed a young woman!

Oh and he's a POS and she was a bright educated doctor saving children's lives. Typical!!!

I definitely see the man using the dog as a distraction. I would not think twice about shooting or anything else to an animal that would charge me or another human. Ok, let's wait for animal control while we let this possible killer run loose and hurt or kill some other innocent person/people. People should really think before the speak. I had my 2 yo outside on our front lawn last year when someone walked by walking their dog. That dog started barking and running towards us. No leash of course because some people around here are complete idiots. I grabbed her and ran towards the closest thing I could grab to protect us. I grabbed my stone edging. I angered that owner saying I didn't have to do that. I screamed at them to leash the dog and wanted to know where they lived so I could report them and the dog. Shut that jerk up quick. Dumb pet owner

Jason Smith was charged with MURDER

Let Me get this straight... A dog charges the cops, the cops kill the dog, a murder suspect is taken into custody & ALL humans were unharmed... You must not have police for family members.. They risk their lives for us & You complain. You are what is wrong with the world. A gifted young woman died & your worried about the murderers dog. I hope nothing bad happens to You because those mean old cops will have to defend your stupid a$$.

This is about a man being CHARGED with MURDER right now! NOT a dog! Stick to the story!!!

animals are family members to some and if everyone has opinions let them have them

Ok my husband is a cop so I want to comment on the dog situation. First Of all if u weren't there don't make assumptions. Cops, believe it or not, are people too. Just bc it may seem that they are cold, emotionless beings, understand this....they have careers that expose them to the ugliest parts of our world. Could u handle showing up to an accident scene, where innocent lives (sometimes children) were taken bc some asshole decided to drink or text and drive? This happens everyday and the cops have to somehow find a way to see their own loved ones in the faces of the victims. Or could ur show up to a domestic call where a wide and child are constantly abused and beaten and not puke right there on the spot? Let me just tell u that these men and women that so many of u like to criticize have one of the hardest and harshest jobs. They seem like assholes bc they have to find a way not to let normal human emotion from interfering with their job. The media releases a few details about a case and everyone thinks they know everything but it doesn't take a genius to realize that they don't tell u everything. Cops follow orders and one thing they are taught is that when human beings are backed into a corner they will sacrifice everything including their own children out if desperation. Obviously a cop would never purposely shoot an innocent person or pet but if a dog is coming toward them, they must shoot. U really think these men and women don't feel the pain of having to do that?

I know if I had a dog (a family member), I would not let them out with any activity going on. Of course the dog will be scared and go into protect mode. Even being a neighbor of something going on! Why would you do that, knowing your dog would protect your family unless you are hiding something and using your "family member" as a distraction/bait. Keep your damn animals leashed and in the house when there is activity around your house and definitely leashed when out for a walk. While your at it, clean up after them too! Tired of cleaning my property when I do not have any animals to ness it up.
Yes this article was about a very talented woman who was living her day like the rest of us. I don't care if she was rude or talked down to that man, he had no right to murder her. I hope everyone is careful, because you just never know who is around you and what they are capable of doing.

Well said Samantha, you are so right and I very much agree.

The charge is murder. Remember, we live in a country where you're innocent until proven guilty. The investigation isn't over. No due process has been finished. He has been charged. If you fit the description and you owned a similar vehicle, this article could be about you. There are good cops and bad cops. Some cops screw up. Some cops lie. On a daily basis, nationwide, cops kill the wrong person, dog, cat, child. Some accidentally, some intentionally. I wasn't at the scene, so I don't know what happened. The news screws up. What's wrong with this picture is all of you are feeding into this without any personal research being done. You give opinions that are based off of a one page news article. If you truly cared about situations like these, you would be getting involved - not getting involved by giving an anonymous opinion to appease your sense of caring. What this article says to me is "Someone who fit the description of a person of interest has been detained by police and enough information has been put together to charge him with murder...and the cops shot a dog." This is life, not reality TV. Treat it with respect.

Did she work locally in Newton. I think that's my son ped. Dr. This is horrible.

Please keep to the important part of the story. A young women was murdered by a POS. Since when is an animals life more important than a humans life? I'm a huge animal lover and would never want to see harm to any animal wild or domestic. But seriously we are talking about an innocent human life.

The priority is catching the murderer. Period. If the dog was let out, who here can say whether it was accidental or purposeful? It could have been accidental, but it certainly could have been a guise beiing used by the suspect to distract police.....or the dog could have had explosives strapped to it that could hurt others....how are the police to know under those circumstances? If this person could potentially have comitted this heinous crime, what's to make someone think he might not use an animal to harm others.........clearly the person has no regard for life of ANY kind. God bless the doctor, her family and friends. And may the perpetrator of this crime get the fullest punishment.

Typical ADHD Levittowners...instead of being concerned that another one of your finest citizens made national news for a horrible crime. You instead focus on the stupid dog being shot?

Horrific doesn't really begin to describe it. Just discovering the suspect lives a few streets away from my Levittown home. Beyond the tragedy, I can't help but notice the unfortunate play on words here, when police say "Smith did not go to Ketunuti's home with the intention of killing her, he originally went there to service her as an exterminator." That, he did. My sincere sympathy to Melissa's family for this unbearable heartbreak.

P.S. He confessed. Which makes him guilty. He felt like she was disrespecting him and making fun of him? It sounds to me as if he has an inferiority complex and that he felt that way around her because frankly she was a successful doctor and he was in his own mind a nothing. What a waste of a brilliant person. She could have made such a difference in many young lives. May God bless her family and bring peace to them knowing that she cared for so many little lives before she left this earth. I hope that she continues to look over the little ones in heaven.

I also hope that there is a special place in hell for Tom Smith. May he rot in it.

What is wrong with the young men in our society? We really need to figure that one out soon!

I would like to commend the Patch reporters for doing a great job in giving the readers and community informed about this tragic story.

We have posted an update with all the latest details on the case. http://patch.com/A-1w2Z

He sounds like he's been a coiled up rattlesnake at it didn't take much for him to go crazy on a poor innocent victim. So many people today have absolutely no coping skills. All out for themselves. So sad.

I agree with Samantha and I also have a son who is a police officer so I know how she feels to have a loved one who has to face the craziest of scenarios every single day.
But, honestly I am a animal lover, and if at all possible, I feel like the police officer's
should use mace or anything but not shoot the animal, unless absolutely necessary.

Also I am grateful the murderer was caught. How very sad he couldn't have just talked it over with the woman. He just couldn't have been too emotionally stable,shows us single woman of today, you just can't be too trusting.

The dog went out in a more humane way than an actual human being.. you people are redic. If that was my sister, mother, friend, gf, cousin.. they better break the fn walls down and take out whoever stands in the way-be it barking family dog- of dragging that scumbag out of that house. How disrespectful to worry about the killers friggen dog, imagine this was your loved ones story. If everyone didn't have a "issue" when cops did their job, which is exactly this.. maybe they would do a little more of this and a lot less bullshitting around with petty crime. Ef that dog and the hand that fed him.. good like bristol/ philadelphia popo.. and R.I.P. to the ACTUAL victim Melissa Ketenuti.

Heinous crime by a hillbillie psychotic killer.
Who else has this rodent poisoner terminated? This sociopath went home & ate dinner, played with the kids and dog, made love to his girlfriend and went to sleep like it was nothing. This man has probably killed before, its just finding out who, when and where.

If JS comitted this crime in such a vicious manner so quickly, it makes me think who else he may killed...