Lincoln County prosecutors are waiting for a judge to sign off on an arrest warrant for a 21-year-old Lincoln County man accused of animal abuse and animal neglect.
Police say Tommy Leigh Larson tethered a dog in the bed of a pickup truck and dragged it along a highway for at least 2 miles.
The dog was euthanized due to the extent of its injuries.
Amber Kolsrud, a deputy district attorney, said she submitted a warrant last Thursday and is waiting for a judge to sign it. Larson is accused of first-degree animal abuse and first-degree animal neglect.
A probable cause affidavit dated June 9 in Lincoln County Circuit Court accuses Larson of tying a 1-year-old female Australian shepherd named Dixie inside the bed of an S-10 Chevrolet pickup truck on April 22.
Just after 5 p.m., a man called 911 to say he was following a truck that was dragging a dog north on East Eckman Creek Road in Waldport. The caller said the dog was tied around the neck and had been dragged for at least 2 miles before the rope broke.
The caller stopped to render assistance to the dog as the truck continued along the highway.
Deputy Cody Padlock of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office responded to the call and observed blood streaks on the road for at least a mile before reaching the caller and the dog.
The caller told Padlock he tried to get the driver of the pickup to stop, but the driver aimed the truck at his car and continued driving.
According to court documents, the caller said each time the truck went around a corner or turned the dog would rub against the truck's left rear tire.
In the affidavit, Padlock said the dog's front paws were worn down past its nails and its rear legs rubbed raw to expose bone. The dog was taken to a veterinarian, who euthanized it.
The license plate led police to a truck registered to Larson, who was interviewed two days later by police.
According to police reports, Larson said he tied Dixie to the bed of his pickup truck with twine and then drove around with his cousin. He later noticed that Dixie was no longer in the truck, but when he went to turn around to go look for her, his truck became stuck in the mud for two hours.
-- Stuart Tomlinson
stomlinson@oregonian.com
503-221-8313
@ORweather