LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The 2020 death of Spike, an LASD K-9, led Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Lt. Joseph Garrido to sue the agency.
He claims he is facing retaliation after he raised questions about what happened: Spike was in a hot vehicle and the department claims the air conditioning failed.
"This is Sheriff Villanueva's Watergate moment, said attorney Vincent Miller, who is representing Garrido. "Because it is just a cover-up of the cover-up that's catching him here. It's also the incompetence."
ABC7 reported a story about the lawsuit last week. Since then the Sheriff's Department has publicly released a memo dated in 2020 that claims it was properly investigated.
Villanueva spoke about the matter as well, saying: "He alleges about the death of a sheriff's canine Spike and clearly, you know, it was a tragedy. We lost a good dog but there was no evidence of misconduct. It was just an unfortunate accident, which do happen, and it was thoroughly documented, investigated and appropriate corrective actions were taken."
The memo also states that sheriff's officials interviewed veterinarian Dr. Yolanda Cassidy at the East Los Angeles Animal Hospital and that she discussed the medical procedures performed on the dog.
But in an interview with ABC7, Cassidy said that never happened and she was not involved at all.
"I think this is maybe a cover up," she said. "It's something that they need to explain to the public and everybody else."
Cassidy said she was not there...
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