Panda, the Saint Bernard who chewed off her own leg to escape entanglement in her lead line, was at the R. Beecher Witt Judicial Building in Madisonville on Tuesday for her day in court.

She saw her former owner, Adolfo Lopez, Hoyt Sutton Road, Madisonville, answer the charge of animal abuse brought against him in Judge Reed Dixon's courtroom.

After two and a half hours and eight witnesses' testimonies, Dixon found there was enough evidence for a Monroe County grand jury to hear the case.

The Monroe County Animal Shelter and Monroe County Friends of Animals turned out in force to follow the case that has made regional news. A crowd of more than 20 people waited in the parking lot for more than an hour to hear how the case would turn out.

It was rumored that the district attorney's office had offered Lopez a deal if he pleaded guilty but there were no pleas entered onTuesday.

Here's how the case stacked up.

Monroe County Animal Shelter Director Vicki Morgan testified she received a phone call from Lopez's neighbor on March 25 about Panda's condition.

The neighbor, Jeffery Rowe, testified he saw Panda "hobbling around on just three legs with what looked like the bone sticking out." He said he called the shelter because he had in the past had a hard time getting in touch with Lopez because he worked long hours.

Morgan said after taking Rowe's call, she called the shelter's animal cruelty investigator, Dr. Nancy McIntee, and the Monroe County Sheriff's Office, and they all went to Lopez's home. Morgan also testified the dog was "hobbling" and added the dog had a foul "rotting meat" smell. She said the stump of Panda's leg was covered in maggots, which she estimated were at least three days old.

Morgan and McIntee took photos of Panda's living conditions, which included an empty water bowl, an empty automatic feeder and a bowl of wet, molded dog food.

The star witness seemed to be Dr. Erica Murphy, the veterinarian who treated Panda and eventually amputated the dog's right hind leg. She told Dixon that Panda appeared to be in mild shock, was a little dehydrated and not at the ideal level of nutritional condition.

She estimated Panda's leg had been chewed off for five to seven days before it was reported. She said she could not estimate the amount of time the leg had been entangled. But she did say the entanglement cut the circulation off, which allowed the leg to lose feeling. The loss of feeling made Panda see it as a foreign object and enabled her to chew it off in order to free herself.

Lopez's defense attorney, Charles Currier, called only two witnesses - women who work with Lopez. Both testified they had been to Lopez's house before and saw his pets healthy and happy. However, neither had seen Panda for several months prior to the March 25 incident and could not testify as to her well being at that time.

At the time of her surgery, Panda weighed 97 pounds. She has since gained 20 pounds and new owners Todd and Melissa Gingrich say she is a treat to have around.

"We're very blessed to have her," said Todd Gingrich on Tuesday. The family said she is having some difficulty getting around and they are trying to find a dog wheelchair for her.

After Dixon's ruling, prosecutor Krista Oswalt walked out of the courtroom and was hugged by a teary Beth Weaver, founder of the Smokey Mountain Saint Bernard Rescue. Weaver took Panda in after her surgery and placed her with the Gingrich family.

The spectators from the animal shelter and its friends group plan to continue to follow the case through court. While they did not get a decision today, they do feel like they've won a small victory.

"I feel like we've done our job," said Morgan. " Panda's well taken care of now so that's the victory."

The grand jury meets on the first Thursday of each month but its findings are not usually released for a few weeks. It will likely be July21 or later before there is any new information on Lopez's case.

Sending the case to the grand jury is not an indication of guilt. It means there was enough evidence for the grand jury to hear testimony so it can decide if there is enough evidence for the case to go to trial.

melissa.kinton@advocateanddemocrat.com | 337-7101