President of Bully Breed Rescue Arrested, Charged with Disorderly Conduct

A 28-year-old local woman, president of Bully Breed Rescue, fought with her boyfriend’s ex-wife in Stamford last Saturday at about 10 p.m., according to Stamford police, who arrested both the New Canaan woman and her Stamford boyfriend, according to reports.

Heidi Lueders of New Canaan said she was only trying to defend herself when she fought with the ex-wife of her boyfriend, Eric Stahl, 38, of Stamford, according to a Hearst Newspapers report on the New Canaan News website. She denied he had assaulted his ex-wife.

According to the Hearst report, which cited Stamford police statements:

The ex-wife told police that a friend told her someone was slashing her tires outside. When she went to see what was happening, she said, Lueders came up, pushed her into some bushes and wrestled with her on the ground. Police said the victim’s shirt was torn and she was scratched. The woman’s ex-husband then started strangling her until she almost blacked out, she said. Stahl and Lueders (whose mug shot later showed she had a black eye and a large scratch on her face) then left.

Police charged Stahl the next day with criminal mischief, conspiracy to commit strangulation and breach of peace. Lueders was arrested on a warrant later in the week.

Lueders, of 26 Marshall Ridge Rd., was charged with second-degree criminal mischief and disorderly conduct, with bond set at $500, according to New Canaan Daily Voice. Police seized from her a .380-caliber handgun and a pistol permit, the Daily Voice report said.

Bully Breed Rescue is an organization dedicated to saving pit bulls without homes. Dogs saved by the group are frequently in Norwalk (including Brooklyn and Chief, this week) and fundraising has been conducted in Norwalk. The group’s Facebook account has 374,000 likes.