PHOENIX — Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has been told to give a deposition in the case of a Chandler police officer accused of leaving his assigned police dog in a hot car last August.
Lawyers for Sgt. Tom Lovejoy filed a motion in March asking Arpaio to answer questions under oath.
Deputies arrested Lovejoy on Sept. 5 on suspicion of animal abuse after he left his police dog in a patrol car for more than 12 hours. The dog was later found dead.
Judge Samuel Goodman of the San Tan Justice Court ruled on Thursday that Arpaio had two weeks to give the deposition.
Lovejoy's attorneys accuse the Sheriff's Office of selective enforcement. The defense also maintains that three Sheriff's Office dogs have died since 2000, and no charges were ever filed.
Arpaio has argued that it wasn't his decision to arrest Lovejoy, although he held a news conference to answer questions.
