Dog dragged by leash resulting in injury
Riverside, CA (US)

Incident Date: Tuesday, Sep 27, 2005
County: Riverside

Disposition: Not Charged

Person of Interest: Jacob Jenkins

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

A Riverside County animal control officer is under investigation for yanking an uncooperative dog that was rescued from Hurricane Katrina off the airplane and dragging him by the leash across the concrete.

Jacob Jenkins is an interim animal control officer for the county's animal services location in Indio. He's been transferred to a division that does not work with animals pending a county human resources investigation, according to Animal Services Director Robert Miller.

Jenkins is not facing criminal charges at this time.

Jenkins was one of about 15 county employees at Palm Springs International Airport on Sept. 27, helping Save A Pet rescue about 120 dogs and cats from Hurricane Katrina.

Jenkins was videotaped yanking one of the last dogs off the plane - a four-year-old, tan-colored chow mix - by her leash. He is then viewed pulling the small dog across the pavement.

The leash was in the dog's mouth and the friction caused bleeding, according to Save A Pet manager Herb Moniz. The dog also had scrapes on her hind legs.

"It's a real shame that because of the action of one person that all our efforts for Katrina has really been left with a black eye," says Miller, who heard about the incident last week while with a team in New Orleans. "We most certainly don't condone his actions. It's not something that the department is proud of."

The entire incident was caught on tape by a freelance journalist filming the rescue.

The dog, now being called Katrina by Moniz, is doing fine.

Case Updates

References

• « CA State Animal Cruelty Map
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