LANCASTER, S.C. — A woman will not be charged after deputies say she accidentally dragged her dog behind her vehicle in Lancaster.
The investigation began on May 5th after a deputy with the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to the area of Great Falls Highway and Airport Road in reference to a dog being dragged behind a vehicle.
The deputy says they found the woman who was driving the vehicle and the 7-month-old chocolate pit bulldog.Β The driver had been flagged down by other motorists and stopped the vehicle.
The dog was tied to the back of the vehicle and had been dragged behind it, according to a news release.Β The dog had serious injuries and was immediately taken to the Lancaster County Animal Shelter for treatment of his injuries.
After a lengthy investigation, deputies say the woman was at home with her children and other family members when an 11-year-old child took the dog from the backyard as a storm was approaching and tied its tether to the hitch on the back of the vehicle without the woman’s knowledge.
The woman received a phone call that another relative had just been involved in an automobile accident so she get into her vehicle to go to the scene of the collision.
That is when deputies say she dragged the dog behind her vehicle.Β Investigators say the woman took a polygraph examination and she did not indicate any deception when asked whether she knew the dog was tied to the back of her vehicle when she drove off.
No charges will be filed against the woman since she did not intentionally cause harm to the dog, according to a news release.
The dog was surrendered by the woman, received extensive veterinary treatment and survived its injuries.Β The dog was ultimately transferred to an out-of-state animal rescue organization.
