Death of Pal the Pug Unleashes Outpouring of Outrage, Cash

The mysterious death of Pal the pug has reached the status of a cause celebre. The little pooch was skinned alive, according to first reports, and died April 8 after he was found bleeding under a bush at an Encino home. He was the sole companion of an elderly deaf woman.

Before the outrage had died down, the city’s Animal Services Department examined the dog and concluded that it was the victim of a coyote attack, not uncommon in these parts.

End of story? Not quite. A veterinarian working for an animal rights group insisted that the city’s experts were wrong and that Pal was indeed attacked by a heartless human.

Newspaper and television reporters swarmed in on the case while “Chicago Hope” co-star Peter Berg, actor Mickey Rourke and his actress wife, Carrie Otis, contributed to a reward fund for information leading to the arrest of the culprit.

The case was too tempting for politicians to ignore.

Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg called for an investigation by Animal Services to address the contradictory conclusions.

Councilman Nate Holden, never one to shy away from controversy or publicity, held two news conferences on the matter.

At one, Holden accused the Animal Services Department of trying to sweep the case under the rug. He said the city’s experts who contend that the dog was attacked by a coyote are “all wet.”

Holden held a second news conference on Tuesday to call on the city to contribute $5,000 to the reward pool.

“This offer of reward is consistent with and taken for the immediate protection of the public peace, health and safety of local residents, as well as visitors,” he said in his council motion.

If the council approves the $5,000 contribution next week, the entire reward would reach $26,000.

That surpasses by $1,000 the reward offered by the city when a 77-year-old Van Nuys woman was stabbed to death in 1994 by a robber attempting to take the money she had saved recycling glass bottles.

It is also $1,000 more than was offered to find the driver who struck and killed an 80-year-old Sherman Oaks woman three years ago.

Madeline Bernstein, executive director of the Los Angeles branch of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said she has mixed feelings about the reward being higher than those offered to solve the slayings of humans.

But, she explains, “there is a certain point where people just can’t take it any more.”

A candlelight vigil for Pal will be held tonight at the Sepulveda Basin dog park.

Going Quietly

The so-called San Fernando Valley self-determination bill appears to be moving through the state Legislature like Moses through the Red Sea.

The measure would eliminate the Los Angeles City Council’s veto power over secession efforts and replace it with a citywide vote on any breakaway proposal.

The bill, by Assemblymen Tom McClintock (R-Northridge) and Bob Hertzberg (D-Sherman Oaks) passed 15 to 0 Wednesday by the Assembly Local Government Committee.

The full Assembly is expected to hear the bill as early as Thursday before it moves on to the Senate.

In an earlier version that sparked heated debate, McClintock proposed a bill that would eliminate the council’s veto and replace it with a vote of just the community that proposes to secede.

McClintock predicts the new compromise bill will see little, if any, opposition on its way to adoption.

He noted that the bill is supported by the city of Los Angeles, which had opposed his previous bill, and Valley civic groups, which had supported the previous version.

“The lion has indeed laid down with the lamb,” he said.

On the Trail

Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks) requested this week that the House subcommittee on the Interior shell out $8.5 million to purchase parkland in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.

Quite a hefty request, considering that last year’s federal budget set aside no new funding for purchases in the area. The year before, Sherman’s predecessor, Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson, asked for $4.3 million for parkland and got $1.5 million.

The funding requests have been an almost annual ritual and are intended to complete the 65-mile Backbone Trail along the length of the Santa Monica Mountains.

Only 27 parcels, making up about six miles, are needed to complete the scenic path.

Park officials and environmentalists worry that if the remaining parcels are not purchased by the recreation area, developers will move in to build homes on the sites.

Sherman’s office concedes that the funding request may go the way of past requests. But the congressman hopes it can provide a starting point for negotiation.

Said Susan Little, Sherman’s environmental aide: “It’s more of a bargaining thing.”

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QUOTABLE: “I think the Valley has made it loud and clear that they want their fair share of services and that is what he is doing.”

--Political consultant Rick Taylor, on why Mayor Riordan included a new fire

and police station for the Valley in his budget