Jury finds woman guilty in downtown SF dog-throwing case

SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) A woman charged with throwing a Chihuahua to its death from the seventh floor of a downtown San Francisco parking garage earlier this year was found guilty today on all charges.

Following three weeks of trial and a day of jury deliberation, Wakeen "LaLa" Best was found guilty of animal cruelty, auto burglary and vandalism.

"This defendant showed no remorse and is responsible for the death of a little, defenseless animal," District Attorney George Gascon said in a statement. "This verdict is a small step toward bringing justice for Dunky.

This verdict also sends a clear message that in San Francisco there are consequences for harming our beloved pets."

According to prosecutors, around 2 p.m. on Feb. 10, Best entered the Stockton-Sutter Street Garage and broke into a Mercedes that was parked on the seventh floor.

During the trial, the car's owner testified that he had left his 4-year-old male Chihuahua named Dunky inside while he went to lunch. He found Dunky's lifeless body on the street a short while later.

Prosecutors played several garage surveillance videos for the jury, many of which placed Best at the scene around the time Dunky's death happened.

A former security guard at the parking garage testified that Best frequented the seventh floor and often had to be told to leave.

A dash cam inside the Mercedes that was activated but was facing away from the car, captured audio from inside the Mercedes.

In the audio, a dog can be heard barking as a car alarm is going off. A person's voice can then be heard saying, "Shut your a** up."

Seconds later, the dog's barking comes to a halt and the voice can be heard saying, "You little b****."

Prosecutor Asha Jameson argued that Dunky had caught Best off-guard and foiled her plans to burglarize the Mercedes. Although the crime was unplanned, Jameson said, "she needed to stop the barking."