Ace didn’t have time to think.
On Thursday, at around 6:15 p.m., three Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies in Florida surrounded a tent set up in the woods. Inside was Angel Bowers, 27, who was wanted in connection with sex crimes involving a minor. He had been arrested in March 2024, released on bail two months later, and missed Monday’s hearing, where, according to Sheriff Grady Judd, he was going to plead guilty.
The deputies ordered him to come out. According to the authorities, they heard him say he had a gun, and he began firing: at least four rounds. Ace was shot in a leg. The sheriff said the dog was the one who prevented the three deputies from being injured: “ACE stepped in to take the bullets and protect the deputies”, he said. The deputies returned fire, and Bowers died inside the tent.
At the Veterinary Medical Center at Lakewood Ranch, the surgery went well, but his left front leg was too badly damaged, and they had to amputate it. Ace is still receiving treatment, with his handler by his side.
