Graphic Video: Dog Killed, Guns Drawn in 2024 Greene County Dispute

PARAGOULD, Ark. — A Greene County man who was previously accused of shooting and killing his neighbor’s dog before threatening the neighbor with a firearm in 2024 pleaded guilty to one count of cruelty to animals last month.

Christopher Rannals, 49, was originally charged with three Class D felonies: aggravated cruelty to a dog, cat, or horse; first-degree terroristic threatening; and aggravated assault. His plea reduced the charge to misdemeanor cruelty to animals. The remaining charges were dropped.

Read More: Guilty Plea Statement

Rannals was sentenced to one day in jail and six months of suspended imposition of sentence. He was represented in court by attorney Bill Stanley.

The charges stemmed from a Sept. 28, 2024, incident in Greene County. According to a probable cause affidavit, deputies responded after a report that a dog had been shot. Investigators reviewed video footage showing Rannals sitting on the bed of his pickup truck at the end of his driveway, firing multiple shots at a dog across the highway. The dog could be heard screaming before a final shot was fired, and the dog went silent.

The dog’s owner confronted Rannals. According to the affidavit, the owner retrieved a firearm from his residence but did not point it at Rannals. Investigators stated that Rannals pointed a firearm at the neighbor and said, “If you muzzle up, I’ll fuc*ing kill you.”

Rannals was arrested Oct. 1, 2024, and booked into the Greene County Detention Center.

Since the case was resolved, Rannals has made posts on Facebook suggesting he was unfairly treated during the process.

In a June 13, 2025, public Facebook post, Rannals said that Oct. 1, 2024 — the day of his arrest — was “the day my life changed forever.” He claimed that he had called law enforcement that day to report a threat allegedly made by the dog’s owner, and said his family had been living in fear due to ongoing issues with what he described as dangerous dogs in the neighborhood.

Rannals also alleged that Greene County Sheriff’s Deputy Ashley Kulin, the lead detective in the case, was “an Animal Rights Activist,” a claim that has not been independently confirmed. In the same post, he acknowledged that deputies treated him respectfully during his arrest and booking.

NEA Report contacted Rannals in June. He stated he wished to “vet” our reporter’s background to ensure we presented a story with “no bias.” We asked twice for the video of the full shooting, which does not appear to have been posted to his profile, despite dozens of other photos and videos. He did not send us the video.

“We have made contact with counsel and will be governing our posts and dissemination of information based on direction given,” Rannals replied.

The conclusion of the court case made the video public record, so NEA Report submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the Greene County Sheriff’s Department (see above)

Sheriff Brad Snyder spoke to NEA Report and acknowledged that there had been numerous past issues with the dogs, from dog bites, violations of court orders, and the dogs wandering on his property, to the dogs chasing Rannals and his family. One of the issues, a few weeks before the shooting, included a dog in a work truck somehow shifting the vehicle into neutral, causing it to roll across the road and into Rannals’ house.

While the sheriff suggested Rannals had previous opportunities to legally use lethal force to defend his family from the dogs, he said the incident shown in the video on Sept. 28 was not one of them.

“Two wrongs don’t make a right,” Snyder said.

Rannals has made numerous other posts on his profile discussing the incident, as well as the ongoing conflict with his neighbor before and since the shooting. He insists that a false narrative was pushed by the department “with malicious intent.”

Original article published Oct. 2, 2024:

PARAGOULD, Ark. — A man faces accusations that he shot and killed his neighbor’s dog before threatening the neighbor with a firearm in Greene County.

Christopher Rannals, 49, of Paragould, faces three Class D felony charges in the incident: first-degree terroristic threatening, aggravated cruelty to a dog, cat, or horse, and aggravated assault.

The probable cause affidavit released by Greene County Sheriff Brad Snyder alleges that on Sept. 28, deputies responded to an address in Greene County about a dog being shot. Deputies spoke with the involved parties and reviewed video footage of the incident. The footage showed the defendant sitting at the end of his driveway on the bed of his truck, facing the highway. In the video, the defendant fires several shots at a dog across the highway playing in a ditch.

Deputies reported hearing the dog crying after a couple of shots were fired. One final round is fired and the dog stops crying.

The owner of the dog exchanges words with the suspect about killing his dog. The dog’s owner retrieves a firearm from his residence and walks to the end of the driveway where the two continue to exchange words, with neither leaving his property. Deputies reported the dog owner did not appear to point his weapon at the defendant.

However, the defendant was seen pointing his weapon at the dog owner while stating, “If you muzzle up, I’ll fuc*ing kill you.”

At that point, the owner of the dog retreated and waited for deputies to arrive.

Jail records show Rannals was booked into the Greene County Detention Center on October 1.

All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.