Attorneys/Judges
| Prosecutor(s): | Leon Cannizzaro | | Defense(s): | Townsend Myers | | Judge(s): | Terry Alarcon |
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CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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K-9 dog left in police car
New Orleans, LA (US)Incident Date: Sunday, May 10, 2009
County: Orleans
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 1 files available
Defendant/Suspect: Jason Lewis
Case Updates: 2 update(s) available
The New Orleans police officer who left his K-9 in his patrol car only to find him dying -- the seats clawed to shreds in the dog’s frantic attempt to escape -- has agreed to pay $11,500 in restitution to the police department.
Primo, a 6-year-old Belgian Malinois, died at a Metairie veterinarian’s office after a series of seizures in May 2009.
Jason Lewis, 33, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor animal cruelty on Sept. 1. The dog’s death caused an uproar last summer.
Criminal District Judge Terry Alarcon sentenced Lewis to probation and a suspended six-month jail term. On Friday, the court approved the restitution.
Primo likely died of shock caused by heat stroke, a Louisiana State University necropsy report concluded.
The police department found no wrongdoing by Lewis, and argued the car was equipped with a cooling device aimed at caring for a dog’s body temperature, which was 109.8 degrees when it was treated. Officers suggested the dog had another medical problem.
Lewis’ attorney said the officer cared deeply for Primo and had left him unattended in a police-issued vehicle designed to safely contain the animals for long periods of time.
But the Metropolitan Crime Commission said Primo died of negligence, and was not the only K-9 to meet a bitter end in New Orleans.
The district attorney’s office conducted its own investigation and in April charged Lewis with aggravated animal cruelty, a felony. Malfeasance charges also were filed against Sgt. Randy Lewis -- no relation to Jason Lewis -- for losing track of his K-9, Phantom, during a paid detail at Charity Hospital last year.
Phantom fell 17 stories to his death, down an empty and flooded elevator shaft at the building in downtown New Orleans. Prosecutors dismissed the malfeasance charge against Randy Lewis, but said they would review the case for possible new charges.
Case UpdatesNew Orleans Police Department leaders fired Officer Jason Lewis Wednesday.
Superintendent Chief Serpas said the officer pleaded guilty to charges in court, and was thus unfit to serve as a police officer.
Lewis pleaded guilty last month to misdemeanor animal cruelty for the death of his NOPD K-9 dog. He also agreed to pay $11,500 in restitution for the department. The dog, Primo, a 6-year-old Belgian Malinois, apparently died last year of shock caused by heat stroke after being left in a police vehicle, according to a necropsy report. The dog's body temperature had reached 109.8 degrees. Police officials at the time said the vehicle's air-conditioning system failed, as well as an emergency back-up ventilation system.
The case caused an uproar in the community after the Metropolitan Crime Commission released photos that showed the K-9 had ripped up the car's seats and destroyed the interior while in distress, just prior to his death.
The NOPD opened an internal investigation in the case and found no wrong doing by Lewis. After the case became public, However, the District Attorney's office opened its own investigation, which resulted in a felony animal cruelty charge.
Lewis later pleaded to a misdemeanor charge and was sentenced to probation and a suspended six-month jail term. | Source: nola.com - Oct 27, 2010
Update posted on Oct 29, 2010 - 11:10PM |
A New Orleans police officer who left his dog in his NOPD vehicle pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor animal cruelty charge Wednesday, acknowledging that his negligence caused the death of the 6-year-old Belgian Malinois.
Jason Lewis, 33, was originally charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, which is a felony charge, but pleaded out to the lesser misdemeanor offense. He was given a suspended six-month jail sentence by Judge Terry Alarcon, as well as put on six months inactive probation, according to court records.
The case caused an uproar last summer, when the Metropolitan Crime Commission released photographs that showed the destroyed inside of Lewis' K-9 vehicle. The car seats had been torn to shreds by Lewis' dog, Primo, who was left in the vehicle in late May, presumably becoming more distressed as the temperature inside the vehicle rose.
An LSU necropsy report concluded that the dog likely died of shock caused by heat stroke. When the dog was brought to a veterinary office, he registered a body temperature of 109.8 degrees. A dog's body temperature is normally slightly higher than the typical human body temperature.
The New Orleans Police Department conducted a probe of the dog's death, but found no wrongdoing by Lewis. After the case became public, then-Superintendent Warren Riley said that early indications were that the car's cooling system to protect the dog was on and functional when Primo was left by his handler for some period of time.
However, the DA's office conducted its own investigation, which led to Lewis being charged. Now that he has pleaded guilty, new NOPD Superintendent Ronal Serpas will review the case to determine what administrative action to take. Lewis has been reassigned to desk duties, according to an NOPD news release.
Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche, who helped gather information about the case, said he believes the plea agreement was a fair resolution.
"I think that his guilty plea confirms that he misrepresented the facts involving the death of his dog," Goyeneche said, adding that the NOPD should take steps to terminate Lewis. "Once a police officer has proven to have misrepresented the truth, he can't be a credible witness and he shouldn't be a police officer."
Townsend Myers, the attorney who represented Lewis in criminal court, said Lewis will make arrangements with the department to pay restitution. The training of police dogs, who are considered to be members of the force, can cost thousands of dollars. A hearing on the restitution issue will be held later this month. | Source: nola.com - Sept 1, 2010
Update posted on Oct 27, 2010 - 7:28PM |
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