Eldrup, 48, is on trial in Lake County circuit court for animal torture and aggravated cruelty to animals for allegedly allowing 30 dogs, three birds and an opossum to starve to death while in her care.
Assistant State's Attorney Michael Mermel said in his opening statement an animal control officer called Eldrup on Nov. 16, 2010 to say she was headed to the Deer Park facility to investigate a complaint.
Eldrup met the officer outside the kennel and attached living area and refused to allow the officer inside, then claimed no dogs were sheltered there and she planned to move out in six weeks, Mermel said.
A month later, Eldrup's estranged husband took a court order and Kildeer police to the former kennel on the 24000 block of Rand Road to retrieve some of his property. While there, they discovered the dead animals, most locked in cages containing empty food and water dishes, Mermel said.
"Neither food or water was made available to them," he said. "She left them to die a slow and agonizing death."
The animals found were in "various stages of decay," Mermel said, and he told the seven men and five women on the jury that veterinarians would testify the animals had been left unfed for extended periods of time.
Defense attorney John Curnyn told the jurors prosecutors would not be able to prove his client had the necessary intent to harm the animals required by the law to convict her.
"She was not motivated by an intent to increase their suffering," he said in his opening statement. "She was not motivated by an intent to see them die."
Curnyn attempted to make reference to the strain of Eldrup's divorce and her worsening financial situation during his opening statement, but was cut off repeatedly by Mermel's objections.
Cindy Williams, a county animal control officer, narrated a videotape of the kennel showing the conditions under which the animals died.
Two dogs were found locked into plastic carriers normally used to transport animals for short periods of time, Williams said, and those carriers were stacked on top of each other in a closet.
There was tons of animal waste found strewn throughout the property, Williams said, and many animals were in a deep state of decomposition when they were found.
The woman said "I'm going to throw up" and rushed from the courtroom, and Curnyn moved for a mistrial.
"That was improper, your honor, and they (the jurors) all saw it," he said. "I am asking for a mistrial, because my client cannot get a fair trial."
Circuit Judge James Booras denied the request, saying the woman's reaction to the tape was "not the fault of the state and not the fault of the court."
He did, however, bar that woman from returning to the courtroom and warned other spectators he would not tolerate further reactions to the evidence.
The videotape also showed unopened bags and cans of dog food and bottled water stacked in various locations on the property.
At the close of the State’s case, the defense moved for a judgment of acquittal on the torture charges, arguing that the State failed to prove that the defendant intended to cause pain and suffering by failing to provide food to these suffering animals. Under 510 ILL. Comp. Stat. 70/3.03, the crime of animal torture is defined as:
“A person commits animal torture when that person without legal justification knowingly or intentionally tortures an animal. For purposes of this Section, and subject to subsection (b), ‘torture’ means infliction of or subjection to extreme physical pain, motivated by an intent to increase or prolong the pain, suffering, or agony of the animal.”
The trial judge, Judge James Booras, denied the defense motion and sent the case to the jury, noting there was evidence in the record indicating that the defendant felt that her possession of the dogs compromised her marriage, and that the defendant was hiding animals from investigators. These are good facts from which to infer the defendant’s motive and intent – they are however arguably frosting on the cake, and the case should have gone to the jury even without them.
Why? Because the failure to provide food for such duration that animals die of starvation (a process that takes approximately 30 days) is no mistake. It is a hoarder’s affirmative and repeated choice not to engage in required conduct as dogs howl, then whimper and ultimately die; the intent is readily inferred from the defendant’s daily refusals to act to abate the suffering and torturous deaths.
If convicted, Eldrup faces up to five years in prison but would also be eligible for probation.
(Daily Herald - Sept 7, 2011)
Earlier:
- Illinois: 18 dead dogs found at Deer Park rescue called Muddy Paws; owner Diane Eldrup arrested
- Illinois: Most of the 17 dead dogs found at Muddy Paws Dog Rescue were found inside living area of house, says attorney
- Illinois: Diane Eldrup, owner of Muddy Paws Dog Rescue, faces 32 counts of animal cruelty
- Illinois: Investigators searching for more dead animals at Diane Eldrup's Muddy Paws Dog Rescue facility
- Illinois: What Diane Eldrup's husband Kurt Eldrup saw inside Muddy Paws Dog Rescue concentration camp
- Illinois: Editorial "Many failures led to animals being abused and killed at Diane Eldrup's Muddy Paws Dog Rescue"
- Illinois: Diane Eldrup and Muddy Paws Dog Rescue mess dates back to 2009
- Illinois: Diane Eldrup, 48, denies newest charges in animal abuse case
- Illinois: Veterinarian Dr. Debra Rykoff and John Breseman who run Fur Keeps Animal Rescue posted Diane Eldrup's $25,000 bond - now they're complaining that people are mad at them
- Illinois: Muddy Paws Dog Rescue, where animals suffered and died at the hands of Diane Eldrup, 43, has been demolished
- Illinois: Animal abuse trial for Diane Eldrup, 48, owner of Muddy Paws Dog Rescue, scheduled to start next week
