Boone, Iowa—A former Boone County deputy has entered a guilty plea to leaving his police K-9 in his truck for more than a day, resulting in the the dog’s death. Former Boone County Sergeant Dallas Wingate entered the written plea in Boone County District Court, Wednesday, December 6th. The guilty plea is for the Aggravated Misdemeanor charge for Animal Neglect with Serious Injury or Death. Initially Wingate also faced a Class D Felony charge because it occurred with a police dog.
A jury trial had originally been scheduled for November 28th but was cancelled and a Plea Hearing was set for November 27th. Wingate’s attorney sought and was granted a continuance on the 27th and the written plea was submitted last Wednesday. A sentencing date has not been made available.
The incident happened on September 1, 2022 when Wingate placed the police dog, Bear, inside his county vehicle. Bear was found September 2, 2022 Wingate resigned for the Sheriff’s Department on September 8, 2022. The Department of Criminal Investigation assisted with the investigation and the prosecution was turned over to the Story County Attorney’s office.
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