A judge in Volusia County has agreed to allow some evidence from a Ponce Inlet police officer who entered a home without a warrant after hearing a man beat a dog to death.

Travis Archer is accused of beating his 9-month-old Labrador, Ponce, to death last April. 

Police said they came out to the home after a neighbor reported a loud noise, and they heard thumping and a dog yelping when they got to the house. According to police body cameras, Archer told them the dog bit his hands and made a mess.

The judge ruled that the officers were OK to enter the home without a warrant, even though Archer initially refused to let them in, because the dog's condition made it a medical emergency. 

Police say they found Ponce lying near a fence in the backyard. Blood was coming out of his mouth. The puppy died. 

The judge ruled that all evidence collected when the dog was alive is admissable because it fell under the emergency. That includes body camera footage and any statements Archer made.

However, once the dog died, the emergency was over. Police arrested Archer and put him in a police car. But the judge ruled that any evidence secured when police re-entered the home, without the warrant or an emergency, was inadmissable and would be suppressed in trial. That includes the puppy's remains. 

Archer was charged with animal cruelty, which is a third-degree felony.