Woman Charged With Animal Cruelty After Throwing Dog Off Balcony

Clearwater, FL – A woman is facing animal cruelty charges after throwing her ex-boyfriend’s pug off a seventh-floor balcony following an argument. The ex-boyfriend told Clearwater police that Shelley Nicole Vaughn arrived at his condo on Sunday (Feb. 27), smelling of alcohol and being verbally aggressive before throwing a 3-year-old pug named Bucky off the balcony. She also threw the man’s keys and cellphone as well. Police later found Bucky dead at the ground floor of the man’s condo building. The man claims he asked Vaughn to leave, which is when she picked up Bucky and threw him. In an interview with the Tampa Bay Times, the man said he bought Bucky to keep his 10-year-old dog named Sandy company when she was undergoing cancer treatments. According to jail records from Pinellas County, Vaughn has since bonded out of custody. She is charged with animal cruelty, domestic battery, and criminal mischief.