Former Beverly Hills Mayor Faces Dog Licensing Charges

Former Beverly Hills Mayor Charlotte Spadaro testified Wednesday that many of the 200 unlicensed dogs found on property she leased in Riverside were not hers, according to wire reports.

Spadaro, 69, served as Beverly Hills mayor from 1986 to '87 during a four-year term on the City Council. She has been charged with 30 violations of Riverside's municipal code, which requires dogs more than 4 months old to be licensed and have rabies vaccinations.

Riverside County Animal Services officers seized the dogs, which allegedly did not have their tags, during a Feb. 10, 2009, inspection of a property Spadaro leased at 5930 Jasmine St. In court, Spadaro claimed that many of the dogs found at the property belonged to other people and were being boarded until other arrangements could be made.

During questioning at her non-jury trial, Spadaro acknowledged that her kennel license application to the Riverside County Department of Animal Services—with which Riverside contracts—was denied before the raid.

Riverside County Superior Court Judge Michele Levine asked Spadaro who was responsible for most of the dogs on the property.

"The rescuers put the dogs there," replied Spadaro. "We boarded the dogs. That was the purpose of the kennel."

She went on to explain that some of the dogs were bound for "foster care" or the homes of rescuers. Spadaro also testified that she did not keep records of how many dogs she had, where they had been found or who had brought them to the property.

"There are no records except what I can remember," she said.

Levine asked whether Spadaro had ever done anything to obtain licenses for the animals, to which she replied "no."

Spadaro was originally charged with 242 infractions, but the majority of the counts were dropped "in the interest of justice and judicial economy," Deputy City Attorney Brandon Mercer said.

If found guilty of all of the charges, Spadaro could be fined nearly $3,000, according to Mercer.

The prosecution and defense are expected to submit their closing statements in writing later this month, after which Levine will decide the case.

Spadaro, a self-proclaimed animal rescuer, is also facing 16 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty in a separate case filed by the Riverside County District Attorney's office.

Those charges are tied to the April 23, 2010, seizure of 24 dogs, a cat and four kittens from a trailer allegedly belonging to Spadaro on the 3000 block of Myers Street in Riverside, according to wire reports.

The animals were living in filth and without provisions, according to the Department of Animal Services. One dog died in the cramped trailer.