The case of the “hot dogs” in Story County is getting downright vicious. After first pleading not guilty, an Iowa State professor who said he just wanted to be done with the case changed his plea to guilty this week, to charges of leaving two dogs in a hot car one day, while he was in court to answer other animal-cruelty charges in a previous case. But in the course of that case, a challenger for the post of county prosecutor charged that incumbent county attorney Steve Holmes used to do the same thing with his dog when he and Holmes worked at the old Story County courthouse. Dan Gonnerman’s running against Holmes in the November election. A judge has ruled that the accusations are not relevant to the case of professor Joseph Viles, and roundly scolded Gonnerman and his campaign manager for bringing them up.
