◎羅彥傑

A dog has appeared in court in India accused of breaching the peace.

一隻狗在印度的法庭現身，被控妨害安寧。

Police in the eastern state of Biha demanded severe action against the dog for biting people, reports the BBC.

印度東部比哈邦警方要求對咬人的狗採取嚴厲行動，BBC報導說。

The dog, named Chhotu, has been in trouble with the law before. In 2003, a magistrate sentenced Chhotu to death.

這隻名叫「錫哈圖」的狗，以前就惹過官非。2003年時，一名治安官判處錫哈圖死刑。

Neighbours complained he had gone mad and bitten several people. But animal rights activists managed to get the decision reversed.

鄰居們抱怨牠抓狂而且咬了好幾個人。但捍衛動物權益人士成功扭轉這項判決。

Chhotu made his latest appearance in a crowded court in the town of Purnea.

錫哈圖這一次是在裴尼亞鎮一間擁擠的法院出庭。

"The court was compelled to issue a summons to the dog since the police found that it was a threat to peace and feared that it might create a law and order problem," district official Rajiv Ranjan said.

「法院被迫向這隻狗發出傳票，因為警方發現牠對安寧構成威脅，而且擔心牠可能構成法律與秩序問題，」區域官員拉吉夫．藍疆說。

"Despite the presence of so many people in the courtroom the dog did not bite or bark at anyone," the canine’s lawyer Dilip Kumar Deepak said in defence of his client.

「儘管法庭有這麼多人在場，但這隻狗沒有咬或吠任何人，」替這隻狗擔任律師的迪利普．庫瑪．迪帕克在為其當事人辯護時說。

新聞辭典

in trouble：片語，處於不幸或困境中。例句：The car company is in grave trouble again.（這家汽車公司再度陷入嚴重困境。）

go mad：片語，發瘋、神經錯亂。例句：He went mad and started assaulting me. （他發瘋而且開始攻擊我。）

bark：動詞，吠叫。例句：The dog barked at a stranger.（這隻狗對著陌生人叫。）

自由時報-970805

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