John Ciccarelli and his buddy Ernest Slavis were out for an innocent Christmas Eve of Catholic Mass followed by some gambling.
After worship at St. Maurice at Resurrection Catholic Church, they headed across the street to the Casino @ Dania Beach, where they expected an adrenaline rush from a good hand, not a wild animal.
Around midnight, when their luck flattened, they took a break in Slavis’ car. That’s when Ciccarelli noticed what he assumed was a mid-sized stray dog moving confidently across the nearly empty parking lot.
