Traci K. Murray Geer, 45, was convicted of child and animal endangerment in July. Riverside County Superior Court Judge Albert J. Wojcik declared the dogs abandoned in September, making them available for adoption. The dogs were boarded for 15 months and it took up to two more months to find them homes.
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| The dogs were in limbo at the shelter because the owner refused to surrender them |
That ruling was essential before the judge could consider the amount of restitution. The parties stipulated to the amount, which was more than $12,000 less than the original billings submitted.
In October, Wojcik sentenced Geer to 60 days in custody and ordered her not to possess any animals during a four-year probation term. Riverside County Sheriff’s Department officials will determine how she should serve the time, with options including a weekend work program or home detention.
The woman had been called Traci Murray since 26 animals were seized from her La Pina Drive home in Menifee. But Jennifer Loflin, the deputy public defender who represented her, told Wojcik Friday that her client wanted to be called by her legal name, Traci Geer.
Outside court, Loflin said she had advised her client not to talk to the media.
In a May interview, Geer said she refused to give up the dogs for fear the shelter would euthanize them. She started collecting strays at the end of 2010 when she noticed more and more on the streets.
During the hearing, Loflin elicited testimony from witnesses that a written hearing notice had not been provided to her client and challenged whether a meeting between her client and animal control officials met the definition of a due-process hearing required by law.
But Deputy District Attorney Justin Feikert argued that testimony showed Geer had been given a chance to be heard in a meeting and multiple phone conversations.
Originally, 26 animals, including a frog and a bird, were seized from the property. Authorities described the interior as unsanitary for people and animals, with flies and animal feces. Geer gave up a few dogs to authorities. She claimed a few more dogs belonged to her adult son. In the end, part of the restitution settlement deducted sheltering fees for the dogs she initially gave up, although the son never reclaimed them.
John Giardinelli is a Canyon Lake attorney who represents Animal Friends.
“When the issue of the notice came up, we researched that question whether the notice was appropriate,” he said, and found that Geer had been given a chance to be heard.
Giardinelli said Animal Friends “treated her fairly. They bent over backwards. The situation was unusual.”
The city of Menifee contracts with the Wildomar-based group for field services and with Ramona Humane for shelter services.
Geer’s residence is zoned to allow a maximum of four animals, without seeking a permit or kennel license. There was testimony from animal control officers that Geer had been told she could keep four animals but would have to give up her interest in the others.
“Our job was to make sure those animals were taken care of,” Giardinelli said, while seeing that the woman’s rights were protected.
(pe.com - Dec 7, 2012)
