Article Courtesy of The Palm Beach Post

By Pilar Ulibarri
Saturday, June 19, 2004

A defiant 85-year-old condo dweller filed a lawsuit Friday in Palm Beach County Circuit Court challenging her homeowner association's no-pet rule that bars her from keeping her 2 1/2 -pound companion, Cha Cha.

Bernadette Casale's suit contends that her Chihuahua, which has lived with her on the sly for five years, is more than a pet. Though an outlaw in Bridgeview condominium in suburban Delray Beach, where Casale has lived for 20 years, the dog is a medical necessity, helping her cope with mental and physical handicaps, the suit states.

An attorney for the Bridgeview condominium could not be reached for comment Friday.

Casale's condo canine case is not a rarity in Palm Beach County. In 1999, Lake Worth condo resident Jim Lemon, then 76, fought to keep his Chihuahua, Willy Lump-Lump.

"I just wouldn't live without Willy," Lemon said Friday.

Lemon went to all lengths to keep his dog, even spending time in jail, where he almost died of health problems.

After he represented himself about 10 times in court, the Coalition for Independent Living Options in West Palm Beach took over Lemon's case and won.

Lemon stills lives in the same condo with Willy, now 20.

"Cha Cha is not a pet," said Shelley Gottsagen, the coalition's executive director, who tried to reach Casale to represent her. "Cha Cha is a companion service animal."

Gottsagen said Casale's case is really just as simple as Lemon's: Cha Cha needs to be reclassified as an emotional support service animal.

"It's obvious," Lemon said of Casale's plight. "She needs that little girl."