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GRAND JUNCTION — A Fruita woman accused of stealing a dog that her brother is accused of killing at the Colorado National Monument has pleaded not guilty.
Delta County court records show Melissa Lockhart, 32, pleaded not guilty to theft Wednesday and is set for trial Aug. 16. Separately, she faces a federal charge of misleading investigators who looked into the dog’s death in December.
Investigators say Lockhart stole the dog and told her brother, Steven Clay Romero, 38, to get rid of it after it attacked a family cat. Prosecutors say Romero dragged the dog behind his pickup.
Romero’s attorney has indicated Romero intends to plead guilty to aggravated cruelty to animals April 29 in federal court in Denver.
