Springfield woman accused of allowing dog to starve to death

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

A Springfield woman is accused of allowing a dog to starve to death by leaving it behind after she moved.

Ashley Leslie, 34, is charged in Clark County Municipal Court with three counts of cruelty to companion animal and abandoning animals, according to online court documents.

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The dog’s name was Reggie, according to an affidavit filed with the charges and was a white, brown and black male, small terrier type mix dog.

The Clark County Dog Warden Office began their investigation when they were called to a home on the 2600 bock of Morton Drive in Springfield.

“(A witness) stated that he was in the process of evicting his tenant Ashley Leslie and had gone to the residence on April 10 due to the gas being shut off,” the affidavit says. “(The witness) stated when he got to the residence he could smell a strong odor of something dead from the door. (The witness) stated that he entered the home on April 12 and found a small deceased dog in the front bedroom of the home.”

“Small food and water bowls were found in the kitchen as well as dog food, but were not in a location that the dog could access from the closed bedroom,” the affidavit says. “A small dog bed was found in the living room.”

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The landlord was unsure how long Leslie was gone, the affidavit says. The landlord had video of him entering the home and finding the dead dog.

The dog warden investigator located Leslie and spoke to her over the phone, according to the affidavit.

“Ashely stated that the landlord had told her to be out my March 20, but hat she was still going over to feed and water Reggie, but she could not remember the last date that she was at the home. Ms. Leslie stated that the landlord had changed the locks and that caused her to be unable to remove the dog. I told Ms. Leslie that the landlord had to drill out the doorknob to get in indicating that he did not change the locks she was silent.”

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When asked why she didn’t call someone about the dog, Leslie said she was facing animal cruelty charges, according to the affidavit.

She is due in court Monday morning for an arraignment hearing.

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