Both a Kingston Police officer and a pit bull are recovering following an attack during an attempted arrest on Broadway. YNN’s Alexandra Weishaupt has more on what led up to police shooting the aggressive dog.

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KINGSTON, N.Y. -- What would normally be a routine arrest took a turn for the worse when a wanted man released his aggressive pit bull at an officer Sunday evening.

“The officer got out of the car and approached Mr. Smith to make him aware of the warrant for his arrest. Mr. Smith let out slack from the leash to put the dog in between him and the police officer,” said Lt. Cliff Tremper of the Kingston Police Department.

The dog attempted to bite the officer who immediately called for backup. Several other officers arrived on scene. That’s when Smith intentionally released the dog with the purpose of attacking.

As the struggle escalated in midtown, police say the dog became more and more aggressive, continuing to attack the officers, biting one of them in the hand.

“The officers tried to subdue the dog with a Taser but that was not effective. They ended up having to use deadly force against the dog,” said Tremper.

The dog was shot one time in the neck. Police say it was a last resort to gain control of the situation and was necessary due to the dog’s dangerous behavior.

“A lot of time when a dog acts that way there’s either something wrong with it physically or it was trained or brought up in an environment that lent it to be a violent dog,” said Tremper.

Similar to his dog, David Smith also continued to act aggressively towards the officers, and a Taser was used on him.

He faces the original charge of criminal mischief, but now has a laundry list of others charges including felony assault.