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SUSPECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA. 66-YEAR-OLD NANCY BUCCIARELLI FACES A MISDEMEANOR ANIMAL CRUELTY CHARGE AFTER MERRIMACK POLICE SAY SHE PUSHED HER ELDERLY GOLDEN RETRIEVER OFF OF THIS DOCK AND WATCHED IT DROWN. >> I AM JUST OVERWHELMED WITH IT. IT IS DISGUSTING. WHEN I HEARD ABOUT IT, I ALMOST GOT SICK. >> MIKE: THE INCIDENT HAPPENED A WEEK AGO. >> IT IS A SAD STORY. IT IS UNCONSCIONABLE TO THINK ABOUT WHAT THE DEFENDANT IS CHARGED WITH. >> MIKE: THE 11-YEAR-OLD DOG, BAILEY, WAS DROWNING AND THE OWNER DID NOTHING TO HELP AS THE DOG STRUGGLED IN THE WATER. >> WITNESSES WENT IN THE WATER AND PULLED THE DOG OUT. THEY DID EVERY ATTEMPT TO REVIVE THE DOG BUT THE DOG DID DIE. >> MIKE: RIGHT NOW, A POSSIBLE MOTIVE IS NOT CLEAR. >> WE MAY NEVER KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THERE, EXCEPT FOR WHAT THE WITNESSES OBSERVED. >> MIKE: NOW, SHE IS CONCERNED ABOUT THE PUBLIC RESPONSE TO THE CASE. >> THERE IS A SOCIAL MEDIA FRENZY, WHICH WE DON'T WANT. SHE IS CHARGED WITH A HORRIFIC CRIME BUT THIS FEEDS IT AND MAKES IT WORSE. IT STOPS THE PROCESS FROM WORKING EFFECTIVELY. >> MIKE: NANCY BUCCIARELLI HAS NOT RESPONDED TO OUR REQUEST FOR COMMENT. >> YOU CANNOT ABUSE ANIMALS. >> MIKE: THE SUSPECT

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A Merrimack woman is facing an animal cruelty charge after police say she pushed her golden retriever into a lake and didn't help the dog as it drowned. Police said that on June 8, 66-year-old Nancy Bucciarelli pushed the 11-year-old dog into Naticook Lake from a dock at Wasserman Park. Police said the dog, named Bailey, was winded while walking around before the drowning. They said Bucciarelli did nothing to help the dog as it struggled in the water."It is a sad story. It's unconscionable to think what this defendant is charged with," said Merrimack police Chief Denise Roy.Witnesses told police that when they noticed the dog struggling, they tried to help, but it was too late. "The witnesses actually are the ones who jumped into the water to find the dog under the water and pull the dog out. They made every attempt to revive the dog, but unfortunately the dog did die," Roy said. The golden retriever drowned in about 3½ feet of water, police said.Bucciarelli did not respond to a request for comment. Roy said she is concerned about some of the public response to the case."There's become a social media frenzy that we don't want," she said. "She's charged with a horrific crime; however, this doesn't help. This actually feeds into it and makes it worse, and it really stops the process from happening effectively."Bucciarelli, who was arrested Friday, is facing a misdemeanor animal cruelty charge. She was released on personal recognizance and is set to appear in court later this month.