LAKE STATION, Ind. (WLS) — One man accused of animal cruelty in a case in which nine dogs died in northwest Indiana has been found not guilty, court records show.
A judge found Michael McHenry not guilty in a bench trial Thursday.
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Investigators say he and Jessee Urbaszewski were involved in the incident in the summer of 2023, as McHenry’s company, F.M. K9, picked up 18 dogs at Chicago’s O’Hare airport.
The dogs were being driven to his training facility in Michigan. All of the canines were slated to be trained as security and police dogs.
Indiana State Police said nine of the dogs died or had to be euthanized after the cargo area of the box truck carrying the animals become overheated.
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Investigators say temperatures on that day were close to the 90s.
“There was no ventilation, no visible monitoring system inside the cab of the truck to monitor inside the cargo area, no temperature alarm to alert the driver of any dangerous condition in the cargo area and the cargo area was equip with a substandard cooling system to safely transport the dogs,” Indiana State Police Sgt. Glen Fifield said.
The truck broke down in Lake Station, Indiana.
At the time, officers who responded to the scene said the driver was using a portable cooling device, which is not designed to replace an air conditioning unit.
“Although it’s good for spot cooling, it’s not for something this size and degree and not only that, adding on the fact there was no ventilation there’s was no air vents in the truck,” Indiana State Police Detective Chris Eagles said.
Officials said the dogs that survived the ordeal were taken to the training facility in Michigan and are now serving at various law enforcement agencies.
Urbaszewski is scheduled to go to trial in March.
The video in the player above is from an earlier report.
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