CHICAGO — A Cook County judge has rejected a prosecution request to detain a man who’s accused of dragging his dog by its leash from a speeding car because he was mad that it wasn’t listening to him.
Judge James Costello denied the request during an initial court appearance for Jia Cheng Mei, 30, on Monday afternoon, according to court records.
Chicago cops arrested Mei last Sunday, nearly seven months after he allegedly dragged his dog from his car window in the 700 block of West 48th Place. In an arrest report, police said Mei “acknowledged” that he dragged his dog by its leash from his car window on August 18 because he was running late for work and the dog was not listening to him.
Chicago Animal Care and Control treated the dog, which suffered life-threatening injuries, according to the state’s detention petition.
Prosecutors charged Mei with felony animal cruelty, misdemeanor animal cruelty, and misdemeanor failure to perform animal ownership duties.
This is the first time Mei has been charged with a crime in Cook County, according to court records.
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