Finally! Indictments for 2 men who tortured raccoon to death in front of fairgoers

KENTUCKY -- It took nearly five months, but two people allegedly involved in the infamous "raccoon mauling event" earlier this year at the Boyle County Fair have been indicted by a Boyle County grand jury.
 
Donald Pike, 31, 340 Belcher Road, Parksville, and Brandon McQueary, 31, 4952 Parksville Road, each were charged with second-degree cruelty to animals for allegedly subjecting "an animal to mutilation, torture and torment" on May 30.

The charge is a Class A misdemeanor, carrying a maximum sentence of one year in jail and a $500 fine upon conviction.

This is the poor raccoon desperately trying to escape
 

According to Commonwealth's Attorney Richie Bottoms, Pike and McQueary were the main instigators behind the incident that took place inside the horse arena at the fairgrounds on a Friday night. A caged raccoon was released in front of several coon dogs primed for a hunt and the dogs nearly killed the animal in front of dozens of onlookers.

"I was pleased to see the indictments returned," Bottoms said. "It was a particularly atrocious situation, especially with families and children present."

An event called a "Coon Dog Treeing Contest," organized by Pike, was sanctioned by the fair board and on the fair's list of scheduled activities that night. When too few hunters showed up to compete, however, something Pike called a "coon drag" occurred, with the animal being released in the middle of the fairgrounds and then attacked by the dogs.

 

 

“When I first saw it, I thought the dogs had a toy. They had it in their mouths and were pulling in two directions,” witness Amanda Barrow told The Advocate-Messenger the next day. “It did not have eyes. There was blood all over the place. It looked seriously injured. It went under a picnic table and laid there.”

The incident caught the attention of animal lovers across the country, who called for the strictest punishment possible for the perpetrators. A joint investigation was conducted by Danville police and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Bottoms said he presented all of the evidence directly to the grand jury and allowed the panel to decide which charge was appropriate. He said he did not try to persuade them to return felony indictments against the two men for first-degree cruelty to animals.

"Obiviously, they felt it was a crime, a serious crime, and you have to respect that," Bottoms said.

Bonds were set at $2,000 each. Danville Detective Robert Ladd testified before the grand jury.

(Central KY News - Nov 28, 2014)

Earlier:

• "Hey, Charlene! Get the stroller and bring Billy Bob over so's he can learn how to have fun torturing critters!"