A Michigan veterinarian was sentenced to 10 days in jail Monday for to a homeless man after finding the ailing pit bull mix tied to a truck.
Amanda Hergenreder’s lawyer asked for 120 hours of community service for the misdemeanor larceny conviction. But Grand Rapids Judge Angela Ross said jail was more appropriate for her, plus $1,000 in restitution.
A year ago, Hergenreder was in Grand Rapids for a professional conference when she saw the 16-year-old dog tied to a truck near a coffee shop. She said she took him to her clinic, two hours away, cleared up a severe urinary tract infection and removed a rotten tooth.
Prosecutors charged Hergenreder after she refused to bring the dog back to Chris Hamilton, a Grand Rapids man who lacked a permanent home at the time. She cited her ethical duties as a veterinarian and noted that the dog wasn鈥檛 licensed. A jury, however, convicted her at a two-day trial.
Hergenreder told the judge that she saw a “dog in distress.鈥� But she also acknowledged that she 鈥渇ailed to see the whole picture.鈥�
鈥淚 failed to honor the bond between Vinnie and Mr. Hamilton. I failed to recognize the heartbreak that would follow,鈥� the Millington, Michigan, veterinarian said before being sentenced. 鈥淚 failed to stop, think, and ask questions.鈥�
Vinnie 鈥� or Biggby, as Hergenreder called him 鈥� was euthanized in July because of health problems in old age.
鈥淲e’re disappointed in Dr. Hergenreder being sentenced to jail, but we take solace in the fact that Biggby/Vinnie spent his last few months in a warm, safe, loving, caring environment,鈥� defense attorney Miles Greengard said.
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