JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A national animal-rights group has asked State Attorney Harry Shorstein to launch a criminal investigation of Clay County's Animal Control after that office conducted an experiment by locking a dog in an un-air conditioned truck for an hour.

Earlier this week, Clay County announced the results of an internal investigation into the death of a rottweiler Sept 10 while in custody of an animal control officer. As part of that investigation, a dog of similar size was locked in a cage in a parked truck for one hour with temperatures ranging from 82 to 87 degrees -- recreating the time and conditions present when Diamond died.

Clay County officials said the dog in the experiment lived, but the test drew criticism, with a former animal control volunteer describing it as animal abuse.

PETA called the experiment cruel and likely in violation of federal law.

"Everyone knows that leaving animals in hot vehicles can be deadly, so this crude 'experiment' was nothing but animal abuse," PETA Vice President Daphna Nachminovitch wrote. "One dog needlessly died and another, at the very least, suffered at the hands of Clay County officials who must be held accountable."

PETA also issued a formal complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and called for the Clay County Board of Commissioners to outfit its Animal Control vehicles with air conditioning, prohibit its officers from putting animals' lives at risk and disclose the whereabouts and condition of the dog used in the experiment.

Clay County's internal investigation concluded that Animal Control Officer Billy Wilson's action did not contribute to the death of "Diamond," a 2-year-old female that was picked up as stray last month after it got out of a family's back yard.

The necropsy was inconclusive, but suggested that the death was related to heat stress. The fact that the other animals -- smaller dogs, cats and kittens -- did not die contributed to the county's conclusion that heat was not responsible for Diamond's death.

Diamond's owner, Robert Henry, alleged his 2-year-old dog died from heat stress and they filed a criminal complaint against Wilson, but that investigation ended without any charges.

Learning of the experiment, a former animal control volunteer has filed a complaint against Bill Bodenweber, Clay County's director of enforcement services, alleging it was intentional animal cruelty.

"It just went beyond my imagination that they'd do anything like that. I just had to go to the sheriff's office," former volunteer Don Rammon told Channel 4 on Tuesday.

William Bodenweber, director of enforcement services for Clay County, responded with a statement: "The dog used in the simulation was never in danger and was closely monitored in a controlled experiment with constant monitoring by animal care professionals."

Related Documents:

Clay County's Internal Investigation Of Death Of Rottweiler  |  PETA Letter To Harry Shorstein