Fairgoers tried to rescue dog that died in hot car while owner enjoyed State Fair

NEW YORK -- A group of people tried to rescue the 2-year-old black Lab that died in a hot car Monday afternoon while its owner attended the State Fair for four hours, one witness said.

Jack Bocchino, of Kirkville, said he watched one man try to push down the front passenger window of the car with his fingers. The dog, named Ali, was slumped on the floor beneath the steering wheel.

"It was still breathing but it didn't look like it was breathing very well," Bocchino said. "(The dog) wasn't paying attention to the guy jimmying the window."

State police later arrested Patrick J. Oneill (also referred to as Patrick O'Neill), of Massena, on one animal cruelty charge. Troopers said Oneill and his girlfriend went into the fair about 10:30 a.m. and didn't return until about 2 p.m.

The dog had no water, and the temperature inside the car was nearly 100 degrees, said Trooper Jack Keller.

Bocchino said he arrived at the fair about 2 p.m. and went into the Red Cross parking lot across from the fair entrance. He said he was stopped at the entrance by an attendant who said there was an incident involving a dog locked in a car.

Five to 10 minutes later, Bocchino said, he was allowed to park. Bocchino got out of his car and saw a group of people standing around a car two rows away. He walked over to see a man with his fingers inside the front passenger window, which was open about an inch.

"He just kept shaking the window," Bocchino said, "and it would drop like an eighth of an inch at a time."

Bocchino said several other people were there, including a young girl. Bocchino said he wondered if her arm was small enough to get inside to open the lock, but there wasn't enough room even for her.
"We discussed smashing the window," Bocchino said. "But no one knows what their rights are."

Bocchino said he walked to a camper near the parking lot entrance and asked the occupants if they had a tool kit. They didn't. So he found a rock and headed back to the car to smash a window. That's when he saw a trooper coming.

"He said they were aware of it and they would take care of it," Bocchino said. Bocchino left the parking lot shortly after and said he didn't see the dog removed from the car.

Troopers said Monday that when they arrived Oneill had already taken his dog out of the car. Troopers tried to cool the dog with ice and water, Keller said, but it was too late.

Oneill is due in town of Geddes court on Sept. 16.

Oneill was charged in May 22 with 22 counts of animal cruelty for failing to care for horses on his farm.

(Syracuse.com - Sept 2 2013)

Earlier:

• Man Accused Of Cruelty To 22 Horses