Jimmy Lovell, 48, admitted to two counts of dealing a controlled substance and one count of aggravated animal cruelty, Knox County Criminal Court records show. He received a three-year sentence, with all but six months to be served on probation.
Lovell was arrested in November 2009 after his then-girlfriend Tonya Eubanks’ 17-pound terrier mix was dragged behind Lovell’s truck in West Knoxville. He told authorities he had forgotten the dog was tied to the back of the truck by its leash.
Animal lovers raised $13,000 to care for “Little Brown Dog,” as the wounded mutt became known, and set up a Facebook page in its honor.
A jury deadlocked on animal cruelty charges against Lovell in February 2012. Knoxville police later arrested him on charges of selling oxycodone from his home on Pilkay Road.
(Knoxville News Sentinel - April 10, 2013)