Two counts for suspect in Boulder dog abuse

COLORADO -- The 26-year-old man arrested last week after witnesses say he kicked and stomped a 4-month-old puppy made his first appearance in a Boulder courtroom Wednesday. He was formally charged with aggravated cruelty to animals and one count of obstructing a peace officer.

Edward McMorris was arrested on Aug. 29 after witnesses began calling Boulder police just after 11:45 p.m. to report a man was kicking and stomping on a dog's head near the intersection of Canyon Boulevard and Broadway, according to a police report.

Tater the puppy was allegedly kicked and beaten.

When officers arrived on scene they saw a man, later identified as McMorris, dragging a "listless and hardly responsive" puppy by a leash behind him, according to the report.

McMorris refused to give police the dog or comply with officer commands. One officer noticed a large metal object hanging from McMorris' belt and tackled him to the ground when McMorris reached for it.

The puppy, which McMorris said was named Tater, was taken to the Boulder Emergency Vet Clinic and kept overnight after the incident. He has since been transferred to Humane Society of Boulder Valley, where he continues to recover from injuries while being monitored by veterinarians, according to Boulder police.

(Denver Post - Sept 6, 2012)