Dog dies in extreme Las Vegas heat after woman says she fell asleep, forgot about dog for 20 hours

Yahoo

3 days ago

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The woman accused of leaving a dog outside in extreme heat for over 20 hours told police that she fell asleep and forgot about the animal, documents said.
On Saturday, May 31, officers with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department responded to the 6800 block of Frances Celia Avenue near Tropicana Avenue and East Russell Road after the Clark County Animal Protection Services requested assistance.
The call stated that a dead dog was found in a crate in the backyard of a home there, according to an arrest report. Officers spoke with Olivia Underwood, 30, who told police she was the owner of the dog, a three-year-old Frenchie named Jazzy.
Underwood told police she fell asleep and forgot about the dog until it died.
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A witness told police her husband noticed Jazzy was outside in the crate at around 8 a.m. Four hours later, when she got home, the witness noticed the dog was still locked inside the cage and was panting, according to the report.
The witness contacted animal protective services as well as her sister-in-law, who lived across the street, to help. The sister-in-law told police she contacted another neighbor to check on the dog with her. She said she checked the weather app on her phone, which said it was 103 degrees, the report stated. They noticed the dog looked like she was not moving.
She told police she and the other neighbor were scared to go into the backyard because they were worried about trespassing laws. She said the crate was directly in the sun, and there were empty food and water bowls inside the crate.
A third woman came out of her house after seeing the two women looking concerned. She told police she decided to enter the backyard to attempt to help the dog, according to the report. She noticed the dog started having a seizure and was foaming at the mouth.
She thought the seizure was heat-related, so she grabbed a bucket of water from her home and poured it over the dog, but the dog was not reacting anymore. She told police she did this three times, but noticed the dog was no longer breathing and 'was stiff,' the report said.
After all three women realized the dog was dead, Underwood came out of her home and started yelling at them, telling them to get out of her backyard.
Underwood told police that she works overnight 12-hour shifts at a local hospital. She said she put Jazzy outside in the crate on Friday night at around 5:45 p.m., around 20 hours before the dog's death, according to the report.
When she left the house, the crate was locked, and there was no way for Jazzy to exit the crate or scratch on the house door to be let inside.
She told police she got home at around 7 a.m., but never checked on the dog because she 'just went inside to go sleep,' saying she fell asleep on the couch with her scrubs on from work. She later said she changed into pajamas and went to sleep.
'Olivia had time to get home from work, order an Uber for her grandmother, change into sleeping clothes, and fall asleep, but never checked on 'Jazzy,' who was outside in over 100 [degree] weather,' the report said.
Underwood told police one of her kids woke her up at around 1 p.m., saying there were people in the backyard. She went outside to see the women tending to Jazzy. Underwood told police the women started yelling at her for leaving her dog outside, so she cursed them out and told them to 'get the [expletive] out of my house,' the report stated.
She said Jazzy's crate was usually inside, but the dog made a mess the night before, so they took it outside to wash it.
Underwood told police she was sorry for being so selfish.
According to records, Underwood was involved in several other situations with the Animal Protection Services, including an incident in December 2016 where someone complained she left a pit bull on a patio in 35-degree weather.
Additionally, in June 2024, Underwood took Jazzy to an animal hospital, but refused all medical care and advice and left, the report stated.
Underwood faces a charge of willful or malicious torture, maiming, or killing of a dog, court records show. She was released on bail and is expected in court on July 2.
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