Animal Law
Plea Deal in Purloined Pooch Case: $300 Fine & 48 Hours Community Work
Posted Jul 16, 2008, 04:23 pm CST
By Martha Neil
In the final salvo in a bizarre case of puppy love in a small Texas town, a former mayor pleaded no contest yesterday to a misdemeanor count of filing a false police report.
Grace Saenz-Lopez was sentenced to a $300 fine and 48 hours of community service, reports the Corpus Christi Caller-Times.
The case arose from a dog custody battle over Puddles, a Shih Tzu that Saenz-Lopez originally agreed to babysit and then claimed had died. Subsequently, the pooch's bereaved owners learned that Saenz-Lopez still had Puddles at a dog-grooming business.
She claims that the dog was in bad condition under the owners' care, but a judge ruled earlier this year that she had to return Puddles to the owners.
Earlier coverage:
ABAJournal.com: "Irate Judge Rules in Dog Custody Case: Give Puddles Back!"