Sheriff’s deputy suspended after police dog dies in hot car

AUBURN, Ind. (AP) An Indiana sheriff’s deputy has been suspended following the death of a police dog that he left for hours inside a hot patrol car.

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department says Deputy Courtney Fuller is suspended without pay for 30 days. The department says an investigation determined Fuller didn’t commit a crime but that he violated employee standards of conduct.

Sheriff Don Lauer says Fuller left Mojo in his patrol car outside his home at 3 p.m. July 6. He was distracted by a situation involving his newborn child and forgot Mojo, finding him dead four hours later.

A Purdue University necropsy found the dog’s death was consistent with heat stroke.

The department says Fuller will no longer be a canine handler.

DeKalb County is 150 miles (240 kilometers) northeast of Indianapolis