Rex is a black Labrador retriever who wore a red service dog vest. On September 9 and 10 in Boynton Beach, Florida, witnesses told police that a man choked Rex, lifted him, and slammed him to the ground in two separate incidents about a block apart. Surveillance video reportedly captured it.
Palm Beach County Animal Control found the footage and identified the suspect, 52-year-old Juan Latrez Poole. Boynton Beach Police arrested him on September 14 on a felony animal cruelty charge. Rex was taken to Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control and is now looking for a new home.
Then the case changed. According to the latest update I found, the felony charge was dropped, a new case number was assigned, and Mr. Poole was charged only with a misdemeanor count of cruelty to animals. He was arraigned on November 2. He is presumed innocent, and the details of this case have shifted more than once, but a downgrade from a felony to a misdemeanor deserves a public explanation.
Palm Beach County State Attorney Alexcia Cox decides what charges her office files. I am asking her to take a second look at the video and the witness statements, to restore the felony charge if the evidence supports it, and, if there is a conviction, to ask the court for the maximum sentence and a ban on Mr. Poole owning or living with animals.
A service dog is trained to stay calm and trust people. Rex did exactly that and was allegedly met with violence. If a case with video, witnesses, and an arrest is treated as a misdemeanor, what message does that send to everyone who works with an assistance animal?
I run I Love Every Dog because every dog deserves a champion. Please sign and ask State Attorney Cox to give Rex the same seriousness the police did.
