Animal Cruelty Case Arrives at Mistrial; New Trial Scheduled for December

CALIFORNIA -- The criminal trial for accused animal-cruelty defendant Steven Ullery concluded with a deadlocked jury, with the foreperson saying that a unanimous decision could not be reached and that there was no chance that a unanimous decision could be reached by this jury.

Ullery was charged with animal cruelty after he and his wife walked into the spcaLA in August, saying that Sylvester and Oliver, cats that they’d adopted at the facility a month before, had been sick since they’d gotten them. He demanded a refund, saying that the cats had had feline calcivirus, a common respiratory disease found in cats.

Ullery pled not guilty to charges. During the trial, which went on from Oct. 6 through Oct. 15, testimony from spcaLA humane officer Gary Wilson and other spcaLA staff members, Uptown Animal Hospital’s and Long Beach Animal Emergency’s veterinary staffs, and documents and photos obtained from a Washington State veterinary lab, it was determined that there was no trace of the virus in Sylvester and there were also broken ribs that had not been made post-mortem.

It was further revealed that there had been three other cats in the Ullery household who had died months prior to Sylvester’s and Oliver’s deaths:

in March, an older cat, Cheeks, who was alleged to have been strangled in order to put him out of his misery during a massive seizure;

Tommy, also in March, who had been brought in previously with a broken leg alleged to have occurred when Ullery’s wife, Janine, had tried to bathe him and later with a smashed face that Mrs. Ullery said came from a fall from a refrigerator;

and Tigger, who had died after being found gasping for air.

None of the cats aside from Sylvester had post mortems performed on them;

Sylvester

Tigger, Tommy and Cheeks had been long since cremated, and Oliver’s body didn’t make it to the lab on time and was too decomposed for a cause of death to be determined.

During the closing argument, criminal defense attorney Lou Pilato reminded the jury that there was no direct evidence of cruelty, and that the deaths of any of the cats should not be attributed to a deliberate act beyond reasonable doubt.

Ullery was charged with four counts of animal cruelty. The jury deliberated for a day and a half before deadlocking at 11–1 in favor of conviction for each of the counts. Judge Tomson T. Ong scheduled a new trial for Dec. 10 and that the $60,000 bail still stands. He thanked the jurors for their time. None of the members of the jury wished to offer comment.

“Why should we care?” L.A. County deputy prosecutor Paul Guthrie emphatically directed to the jury during the lengthy proceedings. “Because these cats are helpless. In cases like this, where people and animals cannot defend themselves, you are the only ones who can do something about this abuse.”

(Long Beach Post - October 16 2014)

Earlier:

• Trial Begins for Man Charged with Horrific Cat Killing