San Francisco Prosecutes in Dog Abandonment Case and Wins

April 2003

Police in San Francisco, California, were alerted by neighbors to the smell of decay in an apartment five weeks after its resident moved out. Police found a dead dog in the closet. The owner had tied the dog up, closed him inside, and barricaded the closet door with a barbell. Neighbors told police they heard the dog barking three weeks after the owner admitted to abandoning the apartment. PETA had long conversations with the state’s attorney, who promised a vigorous prosecution. The prosecutor did win a conviction and the judge handed down a sentence of six months of jail time.

Read about what to do if you witness cruelty.