A WOMAN landed herself in deep water after opening a stranger’s car door in a bizarre little-known law.
Suzanne Vella of Cornelius, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, was rightly concerned when she saw a dog panting inside a hot car parked in a shopping center parking lot.
Suzanne Vella was left stunned when she unknowingly broke the law to help a dog trapped inside a hot car[/caption]
Vella filmed the moment she found the dog in a parking lot[/caption]
Local police even asked the dog’s owner if they wanted to press charges against Vella[/caption]
According to a WBTV report, Vella called 911 and searched for the dog’s owner but couldn’t locate them.
She then proceeded to open the unlocked car door and gave the dog some water.
“I was really concerned because I know it only takes a few minutes for dogs to go into heat stroke. It was a 90 degree day,” Vella said.
“It wasn’t even a decision, I knew.”
But Vella said that when a Cornelius police officer arrived at the scene, she was reprimanded for going into the vehicle to help the dog.
Vella said: “I was shocked, I could tell [the officer] was really upset.
“He just kind of yelled at me and told me I had no right to go into the vehicle and he repeatedly asked the owner if he wanted to press charges on me.”
Cornelius Police said when its officer responded to the incident – which occurred on June 7 – he asked the dog’s owner if he wanted to press charges against Vella for entering his car.
Police said the owner of the dog declined and left the scene.
In a cell phone video recorded by Vella, the officer can be heard asking her: “What right do you think you have to open someone’s door?”
Vella responded: “All I said was that if there’s a dog on a 90 degree day, locked in the car panting, I’m going to give it water.”
No charges were filed against either party in the incident.
In a news release, Cornelius Police said: “We are conducting an investigation into the owner of the dog for the claim of animal cruelty.
“An internal investigation into our officer’s actions is underway.
“We are also reinforcing our training procedures to ensure that all personnel respond professionally, respectfully, and with empathy in every situation.”
Since it was posted online, Vella’s video of her interaction with the officer has been viewed more than half a million times online.
What makes a car a lemon?
Each law has different parameters on what defines a lemon, but generally, a car is lemon when it’s in the shop for longer than it’s on the road.
Progressive Auto Insurance describes a lemon as a car with “a significant defect or malfunction that makes it unsafe to drive,” though exact parameters vary by state. All 50 states have lemon laws covering new vehicles, but only seven have lemon laws to protect used car buyers.
Federally, however, consumers are protected under U.S. Code Chapter 50 covering consumer product warranties. In layman’s terms, the law dictates that consumers be compensated by the manufacturer when “multiple attempts to repair a vehicle under warranty fail.”
What to do if you think you bought a lemon:
- Research your state’s lemon laws and their exact parameters.
- Contact the dealership, especially if it’s still under factory warranty.
- If the dealership refuses to repair the issue, contact the Automotive Consumer Action Program or the National Automobile Dealers Association.
- Send a certified letter to the manufacturer with an explanation of the issue, with documentation and proof that you’ve contacted a dealership.
- Depending on the outcome, you can report the dealership to the DMV for selling a car that needs immediate repairs.
- Consider small claims court.
- Consult an attorney specializing in lemon law through the National Association of Consumer Advocates.
Source: Progressive Auto Insurance
