Demand Justice for Three Dogs Who Died of Heatstroke—Urge DA to File Charges!

PETA has reviewed nearly 100 pages of investigative records and more than four hours of body-camera and interview footage regarding the case of Eric Tolbert, a sheriff’s deputy in Rockdale County, Georgia. According to records, Tolbert’s three American bullies—Luke Cage, Storm, and LaLa—died of heatstroke over the course of two days in June, when temperatures reached a high of 95 with a heat index of more than 100 degrees. Tolbert was so unfazed by his dogs’ deaths that he, as he told one of the sheriff’s office investigators, “trashed ’em.” Indeed, decomposing remains were found in trash bins on Tolbert’s property.

At the time of their deaths, Tolbert was a K-9 handler for the sheriff’s office. Investigators also found his assigned K-9 partner, a black Labrador retriever named Aegis, along with another dog who appears to be a pit bull owned by Tolbert, kept in squalid, feces-littered pens with dirty water buckets. While Aegis was removed by county officials, the other dog was not. His condition and whereabouts are currently unknown.

PETA has asked the district attorney’s office to pursue felony charges in the case. Please help by contacting the district attorney’s office today. You can use the form at the link below, and sample language follows.