A Lethbridge woman who failed to renew her dog’s licence is shaking her head after what she considers to be a mix-up at city hall led to a warrant for her arrest.
Last April, Emory Frizzley says her dog was caught without a licence. Days after receiving the ticket, Frizzley says she went to pay the fine and get her dog licensed but said a city employee only told her to do the latter.
The City of Lethbridge told Global News it was unable to confirm that Frizzley was told her fine would be waived.
Frizzley also told Global News a city employee took her ticket, so she thought she was in the clear. But when she went on vacation over the holidays, she said she learned that wasn’t the case.
“They (Canadian Air Transport Security Authority officers) detained me at the airport — at Calgary International Airport — and that’s when they told me there was a warrant out for my arrest because of this outstanding dog licence issue,” she said. “They told me that they couldn’t detain me because it wasn’t a federal issue but if I got stopped on my way home they would have me in handcuffs.”
According to Frizzley, when she got home, she contacted Lethbridge police and turned herself in. She was given a court date but said she was confused when she contacted the city again as they told her not to worry.
When she appeared in court on Tuesday, Frizzley said the court was unaware of the situation, and in a panic, she pleaded guilty to having an unlicensed pet. She said after telling her story to the judge, she was told she would only have to pay $50 of her $150 fine.
The city wouldn’t comment on the specifics of this story, citing legal reasons.
“I just wanted them to kind of take responsibility for where they kind of messed up in a big way,” Frizzley said.
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