The sentencing came 10 months after authorities found hundreds of animals, both living and dead, at Blew’s Davis County property. He was charged with a long list of violations, but no felonies.
BAD JUDGE, BAD PROSECUTORS
A plea deal between Blew and prosecutors led to Friday’s sentence. Prosecutors recommended a year in jail, with all but 10 days suspended.
Those 10 days at the Davis County Jail may be spent in five separate, two-day increments, which raises the possibility Blew could just spend weekends in jail until the sentence is completed.
Blew must report to jail within 30 days.
Blew will remain on probation for a year, and prosecutor Rick Lynch said the plea bargain prohibits Blew from ever possessing animals.
The judge in the case approved the agreement without alterations.
Blew had previously been ordered to pay $1,455 in restitution to the Des Moines Animal Rescue League, and $261 in restitution to the Davis County Sheriff’s department.
This is the second animal-related conviction for Blew in the past year. He was convicted in Wapello County of animal cruelty and neglect after authorities found multiple animals in his vehicle.
That discovery preceded the law enforcement search of Blew’s property near Drakesville. Multiple law enforcement agencies were called in for that operation, which resulted in the seizure of nearly 300 animals. Another 60 carcasses were found on the property.
Unlike many animal hoarding cases, the animals were not confined to domestic pets and livestock. One kennel contained a ferret and a skunk housed together. Two sugar gliders, tiny mammals native to Australia and the south Pacific, were seized, as was at least one raccoon.
The initial charges against Blew could have resulted in up to eight years behind bars had the sentences run consecutively.
(Ottumwa Courier - Dec 19, 2014)
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