Published: October 08, 2008 10:24 am      

Memorial and meeting focus on death of dog

San Marcos — A San Antonio resident who has clamped onto the case of a dog that died during an August traffic stop has scheduled two local events.

A “Memorial for Missy” will be held at noon on Saturday at Ramon Lucio Park #2 Baseball Park, 601 S. CM Allen Parkway. On Oct. 18, a “Meeting for Missy” has been scheduled from 1 to 3 p.m. at the San Marcos Public Library.

Missy was a teacup poodle whose owners say choked to death during a traffic stop Aug. 5. San Marcos resident Michael Gonzales has acknowledged he was going more than 90 miles an hour when pulled over on his way to an after-hours veterinary clinic in New Braunfels.

One of the officers involved, Paul Stephens, who was heard in police video saying the three-year-old was “just a dog” and that they could “buy another one,” was investigated and reprimanded by Police Chief Howard Williams.

Patrick Greene, who has called for the memorial and meeting, insists the officer should have escorted the couple to the vet instead.

He also charges that a second officer, Joyce Bender, told Gonzales and his girlfriend Krystal Hernandez that the dog was already dead, when she did not have the veterinary knowledge to make that declaration.

Green can be contacted at (210) 913-5138 or peewee_91762@yahoo.com.