Brickbats.

• Author: Oliver, Charles
• Position: News briefs

San Diego police responding to a domestic disturbance call went to the wrong address. When the homeowner, Ian Anderson, opened the door, his service dog came up behind him. One of the officers reached down to pet the dog. The other stepped back, drew his weapon, and shot it.

In China, some urban residents complain that the millions of elderly women who gather to square-dance in public areas across the country each day are noisy and a public nuisance. So the national government has introduced a list of 12 approved dances. It says it will issue further regulations on when and where the dances can take place.

Pupils at North Primary School in London, England, made pinhole cameras to watch a solar eclipse. At the last minute, the school forced them to watch the event on television, saying some religions object to directly viewing an eclipse. When pressed by local media to say exactly which religions would object, officials refused to answer.

You aren't supposed to ride a bicycle on the footpath. But a Lincolnshire, England, police officer wasn't content just to remind Sophie Lindley, 4, and her father of that fact. Dale Lindley says the officer threatened to confiscate the bike, reducing his daughter to tears and forcing him to carry her--and the bike--the rest of the way to school.

Alain Philippon of Quebec faces up to a year in prison and a $25,000 fine for refusing to give Canadian customs officers the password to his smartphone.

Stratton Meadows...