By Laura Goldman From Care2

As Brandon Sanders and his girlfriend bicycled down a Bakersfield, Calif., street on the afternoon of Jan. 6, they watched in shock as a woman riding a rented electric scooter passed by them, dragging a little dog behind her.

“It looked like a stuffed animal at first, because it was motionless,” Sanders told 23ABC News.

The couple yelled at the woman, who was wearing headphones, to stop. Sanders called the Bakersfield Police Department (BPD) as they followed her.

When she finally stopped, she was horrified by what had happened, right?

Wrong. Sanders said the woman dragged the dog by his collar to the curb. She then scooped up the dog, whose four paws were visibly bloodied. Sanders asked her if she and the dog were okay.

Her response? “Shit happens, just like it does with kids.”

Sanders told her that you don’t drag children behind a scooter going 15 mph.

It turns out that the dog, whose name is Zebra, does not belong to the woman, who has not been identified. Zebra was taken to a veterinarian and treated for his injuries, then released to his owner.

Homeowner James Dowell’s security cameras captured the dragging incident. Adisturbing video he posted on Facebook has been viewed over 191,000 times. More than 62,000 people have signed a Care2 petition calling for the woman to be charged with animal cruelty.

Fortunately, following their investigation of the incident, the BPD is recommending that the woman be charged with animal cruelty. On Jan. 16 the BPD submitted a criminal complaint regarding the woman to the Kern County District Attorney’s office, 23ABC Newsreports.

“My client loves animals, especially Zebra, the dog who was shown in the video,” the woman’s attorney said in a statement. “We are confident that once law enforcement has concluded their investigation that this will be ruled an isolated incident.”

Regardless of whether it was an isolated incident, this alleged “animal lover” needs to be charged to the fullest extent of the law.

Bird, the company that provides the rental electric scooters, also released a statement announcing that the woman would be banned from renting them. “We find the video to be deeply disturbing and are appreciative of the community for bringing it to our attention,” the statement said. “This type of rider behavior is wrong and prohibited by Bird.”

A side note about Bird and other rental electric scooters: if they’re not already available in your city, they probably will be soon, and that’s not necessarily a good thing. Users can rent the scooters using a phone app. Many people have suffered injuries not only by inexperienced or reckless scooter riders but when they crash into pedestrians. And when some inconsiderate people are done using the scooters, they’ve dumped them across sidewalks and in rivers and lakes. The scooters have even been tossed into the Pacific Ocean.

Sanders and his girlfriend should be hailed as heroes for stopping the woman on the scooter and for raising awareness of this terrible incident on social media. The actions of these good Samaritans may very well have saved Zebra’s life.

As for the inconsiderate scooter-riding dog abuser, hopefully she will indeed be charged with animal cruelty and will face the maximum penalty. Please sign and share this petition urging that this woman be brought to justice.

If you want to make a difference on an issue you find deeply troubling, you too can create a Care2 petition, and use this handy guide to get started. You’ll find Care2’s vibrant community of activists ready to step up and help you.

For more on this story go to: https://www.care2.com/causes/outrage-grows-over-woman-who-dragged-dog-behind-electric-scooter.html