An Atlantic City police officer smashed a car window to rescue a dog who had been inside for more than two hours Wednesday morning.
Crystalstar Broughton is charged with fourth-degree animal cruelty and an additional misdemeanor in the case, court records show.
The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office will be handling the case.
The dog had been in the locked car for more than two hours, with the temperature outside at 87 degrees, Humane Society of Atlantic County Executive Director Steven Dash wrote in a Facebook post.
"The dog was rushed to HSAC for heat stroke treatment and is lucky to be alive," Dash wrote. "Her temperature was high, her respiration and heart rate were elevated."
If Officer Rebecca Seabrook had not gotten the dog out, "she would have died," Dash said.
Broughton relinquished ownership, so the dog will be put up for adoption.
It was one of two such cases in two days in Atlantic City.
There were two additional animal cruelty cases came in to the Humane Society, according to Dash.
One was from Northfield, where a man left his adult German shepherd in his vehicle while he went to the movies, Dash said. That dog was treated for heat stroke.
While working on that dog, Atlantic City police brought in a 2-year-old pit bull who had been starved, Dash said, adding that the dog "is in horrible condition and will remain in our care."
Authorities remind those who can no longer properly care for their pets that they can surrender them to the Atlantic County Animal Shelter in Pleasantville or the Humane Society in Atlantic City.
