81-year-old great-grandmother spends the night in jail for allegedly letting dogs run loose

An 81-year-old great-grandmother from Maryland has been placed behind bars for a minor pet violation committed almost a year ago. Last May, a neighbor snapped pictures of Mary Magdalene Root's small dogs running down the street and she was reported to Animal Control. It landed her with a $7,000 fine or up to a year in jail. The Harford County woman says she tried paying thousands of dollars in fines but couldn’t afford them. 'I’ve never had a crime. Never. Not even a traffic ticket,' Ms Root told CBS Baltimore. According to court records, the county issued a warrant for Root's arrest on February 12th after she failed to appear for a court hearing last November to address the civil citations. Upon finding out about that she was a wanted woman, she was admitted to Harford Memorial Hospital on Valentine's Day. It was then a judge had her arrested. She was booked, fingerprinted and made to wear a jumpsuit like any other prisoner. Despite her being an elderly woman with no prior convictions, as well as being a cancer survivor, a judge refused to let her go until she had paid a $2,500 fine. After paying the bond she was ordered barred from keeping animals on her property. Root says she was taking care of her daughter’s four dogs at the time of her arrest. The dogs, a tan terrier mix and a black and tan Chihu, were on the loose near her home. 'I feel like I’m a criminal, but yet I don’t feel like I’ve done anything,' Root said Incredibly, a stranger and Good Samaritan ended up paying her bond. 'There are very nice people out there. But then there are some people who are so struck on the strictness of the law. I don’t know whether maybe that needs to be looked at,' Root said. She has been told that she is unable to return to her home of 44 years and live with the dogs, but she says she can't simply get rid of them. She is now living with her daughter, but the dogs have been taken away, and Ms. Root is now a broken woman. 'I love them,' she said. 'I was planning on coming down on the dogs. But my dogs, they keep my company and I love them.' Her daughter told the Baltimore Sunthat her mother is just an animal lover who has owned several animals including dogs, an iguana and snakes over the years. 'She's very passionate about her animals,' Vantina Gifford, 52, said following the hearing. 'They do get out, but they don't hurt anybody. They have never attacked, never bitten, tore up property or defecated on anyone's property.' Ms Root says she has received a lot of support from the community and there is now a petition asking lawmakers to show leniency when they involve senior citizens. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be the same. I can’t pull myself back,' Root said.