Police Save Puppy From Sweltering Car In Florida Parking Lot

A Florida woman is facing animal cruelty charges after a pair of police officers rescued her dog form a hot car outside a shopping center.

Lady Lake Police officers Jeffrey Burns and Michael Tisdell responded to the 5 Below shopping center parking lot on U.S. highway 27/441 in the Town of Lady Lake at around 2:25 p.m. on May 16 after a 911 caller reported seeing a dog inside a hot car with the windows only cracked open.

Outside temperatures exceeded 92 degrees when officers found the black puppy “panting heavily and showing signs of distress,” town officials wrote alongside body-worn camera video on Facebook. The car was parked in direct sunlight, and was not running.

“The puppy’s tongue was extended, and she was crying and scratching at the windows in an attempt to escape,” town officials said. Police believe the dog was trapped inside the hot car for “at least 40 minutes.”

Burns and Tisdell unlocked the vehicle and immediately gave the dog water, and moved her to another air-conditioned vehicle. After drinking a whole bottle of water and relaxing in a cooler car, she “appeared to recover.”

When police contacted the owner, identified as 26-year-old Yeneese Morejon, she allegedly told officers she was only inside “like 30 seconds” and that the store “line was long.”

Morejon was arrested and booked into the Lake County Jail on a charge of animal cruelty.

“Our officers acted quickly and compassionately to save this puppy from a potentially deadly situation,” said Lade Lake Police Chief Steve Hunt. “We are grateful for the vigilance of the citizen who called 911 and for the care shown by the officers who responded. Leaving an animal inside a vehicle in Florida heat, even for a short time, can quickly become fatal.”