Would you break the window in a hot car to save the life of this dog?
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It's not illegal in Indiana to leave your dog in a hot car.
See a dog trapped in a car on a hot summer's day? If you break the window – at least in Indiana – you're the one police will be talking to.
Indianapolis Animal Care & control says they get calls throughout the summer from people worried about animals left in vehicles.
"Literally, if they're in there their internal system and brains could get fried," said animal control officer Jerry Kellems. "It's like baking them from the inside out."
If Kellems comes across a scene like that, he can call IMPD, who can break into the car.
A new law in Tennessee allows not just officers, but anyone passing by, to do the same and be immune from civil liability.
In Indiana, though, no such law exists.
In fact, a statewide law prohibits cities from passing their own law – like Greenwood, which last month passed, and then repealed, a Good Samaritan Ordinance.
"Indiana's home rule statute states that municipalities cannot enact civil defenses," said Krista Taggart, corporation council for the city of Greenwood. "That's something that has to be done at the state level."
Unlike in 19 states, it's not illegal in Indiana to leave your dog in a hot car.
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