Crime & Safety

Fall River Woman Cited for Leaving Dog in Hot Car in EG

The dog was left in a car when outside temperatures were 87 degrees, police said. And it happened mere days before a new law went into effect making it a crime in Rhode Island.

A Fall River, Mass.-woman was cited for leaving a dog in her car outside a medical building on South County Trail in East Greenwich on June 30.

Police said Kerri L. Sousa, 44, left a small tan and black dog sitting in her 2014 Mercedes at around 1:50 p.m. when the outside temperature was about 87 degrees.

An animal control officer reported that a good Samaritan called police to report a dog left in a white Mercedes with Massachusetts plates. The officer responded and found the vehicle parked in an upper lot. 

The windows of the vehicle were left open about three inches, according to a police report, and the god was sitting on the seat "panting heavily."

Police issued a citation, which comes with a fine of $50.

The incident occurred just days before Governor Lincoln Chafee signed a bill into law that makes it a crime to leave a dog in a hot car.  

The law enables ACOs and police officers to enter vehicles when they find a pet trapped in a hot car and criminalizes the act with possible jail time and fines up to $1,000.


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