Overview
- Lisa Smith, 59, and Rachel Smith, 33, are charged with animal cruelty and with confining an animal in a motor vehicle causing exposure to extreme temperatures.
- Both pleaded not guilty in Brockton District Court and were released on personal recognizance with orders for mental health evaluations, no ownership or unsupervised contact with animals, and surrender of their cat to animal control.
- Prosecutors allege Lisa Smith put the dogs in the car because they were "causing a ruckus" and left with Rachel to run errands in another vehicle parked nearby.
- Police say the car had no open windows or air conditioning, investigators took on‑scene temperature readings, and the women did not contact authorities after finding the dogs deceased.
- The July 16 response was to reports of two agitated women on Heather/Heath Lane, police later reported unsanitary conditions in the home, and the next court date is Dec. 4.