A Texas judge on Thursday ordered the former mayor of Alice, Texas to return a Shih Tzu dog that she kept after neighbors left it with her to dog-sit.
The civil trial to determine ownership in the bizarre dognapping case that garnered national attention and ended a small-town mayor's political career was scheduled to last a full day, but District Judge Richard Terrell made it clear such time would be unnecessary and dispatched the case in less than two hours.
"(Terrell) admonished us for making a big deal out of a dog case," said Homero Canales, attorney for former mayor Grace Saenz-Lopez.
The dognapping tale began last summer when Rudy Gutierrez and Shelly Cavazos left the dog, named Puddles, in Saenz-Lopez's care while they were on vacation. A day after they left, Saenz-Lopez called to tell them Puddles had died and was buried in the yard.
Three months later, a relative of the Gutierrez family spotted Puddles, now known as Panchito, at a dog groomer.
When Saenz-Lopez refused to return the dog, the Gutierrez family filed a criminal complaint and a civil lawsuit. Saenz-Lopez was indicted in January on two felony counts of tampering with evidence and concealing evidence. A preliminary hearing on those charges is scheduled for Monday.
Saenz Lopez resigned as mayor in February, a position she had held since 2003, once a recall petition began circulating. She claimed the Gutierrez family neglected the dog, and she was saving it.
An attorney representing the Gutierrez family did not return a call seeking comment.
