Trial Set for July 19 for Long Beach Dog Rescuers

A trial date in Tennessee has been set for two former Long Beach dog rescuers arrested on a Memphis area highway earlier this year with somewhere over 100 crated dogs in a U-Haul truck and an SUV.

On Friday, Bonnie Sheehan and Pamela King-McCracken did not appear in the Tennessee courtroom because the trial was simply being calendared for July 19, according to a friend of both women.

They plan to await the jury trial this summer at McCracken's Virginia property; Sheehan also owned a property to which they were reportedly relocating: the cost-of-living would be cheaper, they reasoned, to continue finding homes for an increasing number of dogs that had been abanded at Hearts for Hounds no-kill rescue. (The operation was since closed by Long Beach Animal Control Services absent the licensed operator-Sheehan).

The defendants expressed hope in their trial's outcome.

"We're both faithful women and we're trusting the truth will come out," Sheehan told the Press Telegram. The women were arrested Jan. 17 and face 15 counts each of animal cruelty from a March indictment handed down by a Tennessee grand jury.

On Sunday, June 3, Sheen and King-McCracken were back in Long Beach for a day-long celebration and rally by friends and supporters at Bixby Park. (See photos). Several hundred people and almost as many leashed dogs attended the gathering, featuring live performances. Several large jars were filled with cash and checks, and one organizer said more than $4,500 was raised.