Tampabay: Katrina canine dispute trial set

The high-profile dispute over the ownership of two dogs rescued after Hurricane Katrina and adopted by two Tampa Bay residents will go to trial the week of April 16, Pinellas County Judge Henry Andringa decided Friday.

Steven and Dorreen Couture of St. Bernard Parish, La., filed suit in Pinellas County in July, seeking to reclaim the dogs, which were adopted by Pam Bondi of Tampa and Rhonda Rineker of Dunedin. The suit also names the Humane Society of Pinellas, which adopted out the dogs.

The Coutures were displaced during Katrina, and the dogs - a St. Bernard and a shepherd mix -were taken to a temporary shelter. They said they were told the dogs would be returned to them.

The Coutures tracked the dogs to the bay area in early 2006. But by then, Bondi and Rineker had already adopted them. Bondi, a Hillsborough County prosecutor, adopted the St. Bernard, known as Master Tank, and renamed him Noah. Rineker adopted the shepherd mix, known as Nila, and renamed her Gracie.

Bondi has argued that the St. Bernard was sick and improperly cared for. Rineker has contended she adopted an abandoned dog in good faith.

Murray Silverstein, the Coutures' attorney, wanted a March trial date. But Bondi's attorney, Barry Cohen, will be in federal court then. And Rineker's attorney, Jeff Brown, will be in a federal trial in March and on vacation in early April.

Camille Godwin, Bondi's attorney Friday, said she has yet to get the Coutures' deposition and said that must be done before trial.

The Coutures, meanwhile, visited with the dogs last weekend, by Andringa's order allowing visitations every two to three weeks.

The Coutures and their two grandchildren drove from New Orleans and visited the shepherd mix for about an hour Saturday at John Chesnut Sr. Park in East Lake. The next day, they met for an hour with the St. Bernard in Tampa's Hyde Park.

Share your thoughts on this story

Read our guidelines for comments

Comments on this article

by William again	02/08/07 09:33 PM
Meridith wrote:"I have met Noah, and he was in horrible shape when Pam rescued him" Meredith your testimony is needed.Illegal to carry sick dogs across state lines without signed documents that were never filed.Knowingly took infected dog and diease!

by Tarpon	01/18/07 05:26 PM
Oh come on! Bondi posed for the newspapers the day after she got Tank-doesn't look like he was dying to me. I guess it was Ok to separate Nila from Tank-animals don't have feelings, do they! Give them back & stop spending my tax money on this farce!

by Friend	01/18/07 12:47 PM
Meredith most animals and people were in horrible shape after Katrina. I saw Tank before Katrina he was happy and under vet care and heartworm treatment - glad Pam has continued with his treatment so he is in good shape to go back to NOLA

by Meredith	01/17/07 06:06 PM
I have met Noah, and he was in horrible shape when Pam rescued him. He is now happy and healthy. Someone who would abandon their dogs in a crisis does not deserve to get them back.

by Sandra	01/16/07 04:57 PM
If shelters don't lie to the fosters/adopters about the pet's ownership status, then people won't be scared off from adopting. Don't blame the Coutures for someone else's unethical conduct.

by Laura	01/16/07 12:36 PM
If the new owners are forced to return the much loved and now healthy new family memebers, then if another disaster strikes not one person will want to adopt for fear of this happening to them. Not one but 2 dogs had severe heart worms. They are home

by outraged citizen	01/15/07 10:28 AM
if the property was a lamp or a chair would this lawsuit exist? If pets ARE property the dogs are clearly owned by the Coutures. If they are more than property the laws need to be changed. For now the law is with Couture family. Why delay justice?

by Anita	01/14/07 06:49 PM
Why can't the two dogs get to meet each other along with the Coutures. There is no "they were told the dogs would be returned to them." I've seen pictures of a healthy St. Bernard with a sign clearly stating it was owned by them. NO MORE TRIAL DELAYS

by debra	01/14/07 03:31 PM
we all know that the courters are the owners the judge will return them home. i pray the courters sue these 2 withces for pain and suffering and take everything they have how dare they do this to folks who lost everything .wont see those 2 in heave

by Sandra	01/13/07 09:38 PM
The pets were not abandoned. They were delivered by Mr.C's brother to the shelter for safekeeping until the C's could find a place to live. The paperwork was clearly marked "owned" You who say they were abandoned are LIARS.

by davec	01/13/07 04:51 PM
this is what parents must endure with the children and parental rights as well.keep in mind these are pets, not children. Imagine what Biond would put a man through if this issue involved children. What lengths she would go to. dis=bar and fire her

by Tarpon	01/13/07 03:54 PM
So let me get this right--my tax $ are paying for this charade? Give the dogs back--they were fine before Katrina; they'll be fine after. When are the Rinekers & Bondi going to stop using my tax money to puff up their vanity & selfishness!

by Sue	01/13/07 03:10 PM
And I suppose Bondi & Co. will all come down with avian flu on April 16... Throw the case out! Uphold Andringa's ruling: RETURN THE DOGS NOW to the Coutures. (who never abandoned them--read all the facts, not just B's ever-changing stories)

by petlover	01/13/07 03:07 PM
Barb's right, the owners ABANDONED THEM. They don't deserve to have them back

by Hope	01/13/07 03:02 PM
I would have to agree with Pat, who in there right mind would travel all this way for an hr with an animal if they didnt really care for it. RETURN THE ANIMALS to their owner.

by Sandra	01/13/07 02:19 PM
Those two dogs, life-mates before Katrina, have cruelly been kept apart from each other by Bondi and Rineker. What--did the dogs not take good enough care of each other, too? What a study in unmitigated selfishness, gall, and elitism.

by Margie	01/13/07 01:33 PM
Those stating these dogs were abandoned and neglected are reading everything but the truth - how about these pets..were they neglected and abandoned as well http://www.thekittyliberationfront.org/Katrina-somewhere-video.htm

by mary	01/13/07 01:14 PM
lets face it---animals do have a shorter memory than people and can adjust the question here is what is best for the animals? they adopted the animals legally and have become attached like any of us would

by Lisa	01/13/07 01:11 PM
Why did these people not plan for where their dogs would go in a hurricane? They knew the storm was coming and did nothing. They are irresponsible. There is no way they should get the dogs back. Bet they do not have a plan now for the next storm.

by Barb	01/13/07 11:39 AM
The dogs were not cared for properly before the hurricane and then were abandoned. I don't think the original owners should get them back. They are happy and healthy now with their new owners. Let them stay where they are!!!

by Neil	01/13/07 11:10 AM
Have the Real owners on one end of room, Fake owners on other end ... let dogs loose in the middle, they will go to who they wish to be with!!! Stop wasting my tax $ with ignorant legal dealings, when there is no case to decide!

by givedogsbacknow	01/13/07 11:08 AM
Bondi appeared last week on a fox news program as part of a panel weighing in on the Trump/ODonnell feud.Bondi had the nerve to say Rosie was telling lies about Trump.What about the lies Bondi has told about this situation?She is a pathetic JOKE!

by Pat	01/13/07 11:06 AM
What bad pet owner would pack up the family to drive from New Orleans couple times a mth to spend a whopping 1 hr with their dog? This tells much about the wonderful and loving REAL OWNERS - SEND THE DOGS BACK WITH THEM! Not doing so speaks volumes!

by Mandy	01/13/07 10:43 AM
This goes beyond belief. Can someone please explain how a judge can rule who owns the pets (and it really is undisputed)and yet the true owner has to wait all this time for a jury to decide - decide WHAT exactly? Let these animals GO HOME NOW!

by rescue99	01/13/07 10:34 AM
The JUDGE is SO out of line in making the REAL owners of these dogs wait a YEAR because of court dates! Bondi KNOWS she is wrong and is illegally keeping Master Tank! RETURN THE DOGS TO THEIR RIGHTFUL AND LOVING OWNER!

by Kay	01/13/07 10:15 AM
What an outrageous waste of tax money caused by the incredible selfishness of 2 people, 1 of whom is supposed to be a public servant. Nice to see her use her knowledge to work the system. Gives faith in the system. NOT.

by Dave	01/13/07 09:37 AM
This is outrageous! GIVE THE DOGS BACK TO THEIR OWNERS.