MEMPHIS, Tenn. —A judge gave her two years in prison for leaving a puppy to die in a hot car while she shopped, but now she is a free woman.
Alexis Cain got that sentence suspended Thursday.
Cain will be on probation for two years, and a judge made it clear if she puts even a toe out of line, she will be headed right back to prison.
Cain’s puppy suffered an excruciating death, left alone in a blazing hot car while Cain shopped for hours at Wolfchase.
Katie Pemberton with the Humane Society saw the 3-month-old terrier after it died.
“The puppy suffered. It was not a quick death. It was not an easy death.”
Judge Bobby Carter agreed to suspend Cain’s two-year prison sentence.
It was a sentence her attorney Mark Renken said was harsher than some he has seen for crimes against people.
But Carter said the only reason he is suspending it is because she has no criminal history.
“We’ve had cases where they sent cases back to the courts and made us put people on judicial diversion for leaving a child in the car to die. So under those circumstances, I feel pretty much compelled under the law to give you this chance,” he told Cain.
Pemberton said it is a heartbreaking reminder of how dangerous it is to leave pets in cars when temperatures are too high or too low.
“If it’s above 70 degrees, it is not safe to leave a person or an animal in the car. If it’s below freezing, it’s not safe.”
That day, it was 99 degrees outside and 140 degrees inside the car.
Someone noticed the puppy and rushed it to a nearby veterinarian where the dog died.
It’s unclear how long the puppy was left alone, but we do know it was another two hours before the pair returned to their car.
According to the Humane Society of Memphis and Shelby County, the puppy’s internal temperature was 110 degrees, which is the maximum their thermometer would measure.
The cause of death was ruled as heat stroke and dehydration.
While Carter told Cain he was worried she has not taken the situation seriously, Renken insists she understands the gravity of it now.
“After her 10 days in jail, she’s certainly taking this very seriously.”
Carter also ruled she will not be allowed to own a pet during that time.
