This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A former Smithfield animal control officer has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges stemming from the June death of an impounded dog.
Brady Robbins, 25, is scheduled to be sentenced next month in 1st District Court on charges of tampering with evidence and animal cruelty.
According to Smithfield police reports, Robbins placed the dog in an unshaded kennel on the afternoon of June 23, with the intention of taking the animal to the Cache County Humane Society at the end of his shift.
Robbins, who was helping another officer and not working a regular animal control shift, forgot about the dog. Lola, a 4-year-old golden Labrador retriever, had died from heat exposure when the officer returned on Monday, June 27.
Robbins disposed of the animal but claimed in a police report that he had taken it to the Humane Society. Witnesses, however, told Robbins' superiors that they had seen him remove the dead animal.
In a later report, Robbins wrote that he lied because he feared "repercussion from the city and public, and [because he had] not been in this situation before."
Robbins faces up to one year in jail on the class A misdemeanor evidence tampering count and up to 90 days in jail on the class C misdemeanor animal cruelty charge. His sentencing is set for March 19 before Judge Kevin Allen.