SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) - Two people charged with stealing a puppy from a Springfield shelter say they're sorry.
The Springfield News-Leader (http://sgfnow.co/1L76TIU) reports that Springfield attorney Dee Wampler is representing the suspects in the 8-week-old puppy's theft from the Humane Society of Southwest Missouri. He says what his clients did was "stupid" and "senseless."
But Wampler says his clients aren't criminals for taking the puppies without paying. Aaron Duvel and Jamie Wirsig have been charged with a felony count of stealing an animal. Wampler says a felony conviction could cause problems for both suspects.
Duvel is a Missouri National Guard member, while Wirsig is enrolled to begin law school in the fall.
Wirsig says they took the puppy because they feared he would be neutered too young. Duvel now says the decision was "irrational."