MARIETTA, Ga. — A Marietta man is facing animal cruelty charges after police say he visited Six Flags White Water and left two dogs locked inside his car for hours on a hot summer day.
Christian Waddell, 27, was arrested Saturday. Parkgoers alerted authorities to two medium-sized dogs left in a vehicle in the parking lot, police said.
Video taken by Marietta police shows the temperature reading in the back of the car where the dogs were huddled was 125 degrees Fahrenheit before Marietta firefighters forced entry into the vehicle.
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Outdoor temperatures that day reached 91 degrees, while the temperature inside the car climbed to as high as 140 degrees, Marietta police said.
“In the front it was approaching 140 degrees,” said Marietta Police Officer Chuck McPhilamy. “Eighty-five to 95 is the maximum temperature inside the vehicle before we have to force entry and rescue those animals.”
Officers said they confronted Waddell as he left the water park, about two hours after he parked.
“Officers immediately confronted him. He was cooperative and seemed somewhat confused — like, why would it be a problem for the dogs? —completely unaware of how much danger they were actually in,” McPhilamy said.
The dogs were OK and were turned over to Cobb County Animal Control, Marietta police said.
Animal Control will conduct its own investigation to determine if the owner can reclaim the dogs.
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