A Pennsylvania judge declared a mistrial for a man accused of killing his neighbor’s yellow lab after jurors were caught mingling with a courthouse therapy dog that wandered into their room, according to reports.
Judge Michael Salisbury declared a mistrial on Friday after the therapy pooch named Clark inadvertently wandered into the room where jurors gathered after their lunch break for the trial of Robert Wallish III, Pennlive reported.
Wallish is on trial for multiple charges, including aggravated animal cruelty, for killing his neighbor’s yellow-mix lab named Hemi near his hunting cabin in 2024, according to the outlet and court records.
Clark, a black lab, was at the courthouse on Friday with his probation office handler when his leash was dropped — causing him to scamper into a room where the jurors pet him, the outlet reported.
After being informed of the impromptu therapy dog visit, Salisbury called Wallish’s defense attorney and the district attorney into his chambers to discuss the “issue of concern.”
Wallish’s attorney, Sarah Marie Lockwood, moved for a mistrial despite the DA’s suggestion to poll jurors and issue a curative instruction. The defense’s motion was ultimately granted, according to the outlet.
The mistrial means Wallish’s case will get another trial with a brand new jury unless he takes a plea agreement. Jury selection is currently scheduled for May 15.
Wallish, 55, admitted in earlier testimony that he shot Hemi while checking his trail cameras at his one-acre hunting camp property in December 2024, the outlet reported.
While checking on one of the cameras, he testified that he heard a growl, turned, and fired a gun, but did not realize what he had hit until it was too late.
“I felt terrible because it was a dog,” he told the courtroom. “I felt awful. I love dogs.”
After he brought out a flashlight to confirm that the dog had been shot, Wallish took a garbage bag and placed Hemi’s remains inside before dumping the dead dog in a field three miles away from his home in Dauphin County.
He said he didn’t recognize or know the pup, which was owned by Andrew and Alyssa Gavlock, neighbors of the hunting property.
Wallish is out on $10,000 unsecured bail as the case moves into a possible retrial.