Woman jailed for taking photos of her neighbor's dog wearing a diaper and sharing them online
A Texas woman spent 14 hours in jail after being arrested
for trying to help her neighbor's dog that appeared to be left on a balcony
with its mouth tied shut.
Amber Cammack called a number of government agencies,
including the Harris County Sheriff's Office to report what appeared to be
animal abuse of a dog her neighbor was keeping on a balcony.
When no one responded, Cammack shared images on Facebook
showing her neighbor's dog wearing a diaper with something tied around its
mouth while being left on a small balcony at a Houston condo complex.
Cammack said the dog was left on the balcony round the
clock, even during rain storms.
The situation had become so dire, that the neighbor below
the condo where the dog was kept on the balcony, had urine and excrement on
their balcony.
After Cammack shared photos and video of the dog on the
balcony to Facebook and YouTube, she was surprised when the Harris County
Sheriff, Ron Hickman, called her.
She claims that Hickman told her she was harassing the dog's
owners and demanded for her to remove the Facebook post about the dog or he
would arrest her.
Cammack did not remove the post and Monday she was arrested
for electronic harassment.
'When we file charges, our charges are based on the evidence,' Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson said.
'And in animal cruelty cases, our evidence comes from experts who have examined the dog.'
Karess Buckman, a woman who lives in the home where the
puppy, named June, was being kept, explained why it was sporting a diaper.
'The diaper was due to the dog having loose stool,' Buckman
told KPRC.
'We didn't want it to drip down on the neighbor below
because she had urinated.'
Buckman explained that the six-month-old Lab-German Shepherd
mix belongs to a friend of her son's who was staying with the family for about
a week.
She said that June is back with the owner of the dog and no
longer at the condo.
Since being released from jail, Cammack is demanding an
apology from Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman for arresting her.