What monetary amount is extreme emotional distress equal to? For one Long Island man who really, really misses his best friend, it's exactly $11 million. Ilich Jorquera is suing his ex-girlfriend for that amount, claiming that she stole their two-year-old Schnauzer Guapo after they broke up. "I miss him every single day. Sometimes I talk to myself and I feel like I'm talking to him... I love that dog and I know I can take better care of him," said Jorquera, a landscape contractor.
Jorquera claims in his lawsuit that he and his girlfriend of five years, Carla Pimentel, split up earlier this year; after he returned home in February from a trip, he discovered she had taken the pooch. He admits that the dog was registered in his ex's name, but he says they both agree he was the primary caretaker, walking him four or five times a day: "I walked him, fed him and played with him every day...he was my best friend." He also says he took financial responsibility for the dog, and paid for Guapo to go to the vet and groomer every month.
Jorquera was shocked that Pimentel would secretly take the dog. He hasn't heard from his ex in four months, and has become impatient with the emotionally distressing situation: "She was just too busy to properly care for him... I cannot wait any longer for Carla to come to her senses." His lawyer noted that although most animals are treated as property, Guapo is much more to her client: "One cannot just get another dog and expect that animal to fill the void."
