Oregon: Woman acquitted of aggravated abuse of Collie at Bend pet lodge sues her accusers

OREGON -- A former kennel worker in Bend, acquitted of felony animal abuse two years ago, accuses Deschutes County and two police investigators of malicious prosecution that caused her public humiliation.

The lawyer for 45-year-old Martie Davidson filed a complaint in Eugene's U.S. District Court, made public this week, which alleges that his naïve client endured false accusations, coercive interrogation, arrest, prosecution and public scorn.

Davidson's lawsuit seeks $250,000 in actual damages and unspecified punitive damages.

Her complaint names as defendants the county, a sheriff's deputy, an Oregon State Police polygraph operator and the owners of a now-dead Collie named "Zoe" for their roles in violating her constitutional rights, along with libel and slander.

Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel, who took office on Jan. 5, described the prosecution of Davidson as a "straight ahead animal abuse case." He noted that a grand jury handed up a felony indictment against Davidson and that a trial jury acquitted her of all charges.

"We accept those verdicts," Hummel said. "I've seen no evidence that this was a malicious prosecution."

Davidson took a low-paying job at the Deschutes Pet Lodge in 2008, where she enjoyed stress-free work and time with animals.

"(She) had self esteem issues, was fearful of confrontation and quick to accept blame for things that were not her fault," the lawsuit says before laying out a chronology of claims against her accusers:

Davidson was employed at the pet lodge in July 2009, when John and Caren Burton brought their Collie "Zoe" in for a stay.

On Aug. 1, the Burtons took Zoe to an animal clinic, where a veterinarian determined she might have been struck by a car or suffered a similar trauma. The animal's condition worsened as the days wore on, and an X-ray soon diagnosed Zoe with multiple fractures of six ribs on her left side.

According to the lawsuit, the Burtons accused the pet lodge of causing the injuries and they sought publicity to force the district attorney's office to arrest someone at the business. They gave newspaper and TV interviews and started a website.

One of Davidson's coworkers told sheriff's Deputy Jennifer Gaspard that he had seen Davidson get upset with Zoe and pull on her leash. Davidson later agreed to take a polygraph, knowing she had not hurt the dog, the lawsuit alleges.

On Oct. 29, 2009, state police Trooper Chris Kaber hooked Davidson to the machine.

According to the lawsuit, Davidson told investigators that a kennel door might have bumped Zoe, and they convinced her that she caused the dog's injuries without even knowing what they were.

"The plaintiff naïvely believed that police officers would not lie and that therefore she must have caused the injuries," the lawsuit alleges.

Davidson accuses investigators of providing false information to the district attorney's office to prosecute her. Later, when Davidson refused to plead guilty to first-degree animal abuse, she alleges that authorities piled on new charges of aggravated animal abuse. The charges carried a potential prison sentence of up to five years in prison.

The Burtons spread the story publicly that Davidson was responsible for their pet's injuries, libeling and slandering her, the lawsuit alleges.

Calls placed to a phone number associated with the Burtons were not returned.

X-rays taken in February 2010, nearly seven months after Zoe's stay at the pet lodge, showed that the rib fractures had not healed. In fact, new fractures were discovered on the other side of her ribcage, Davidson alleges. When a veterinarian attempted to repair the breaks with wire, the bones dissolved.

Zoe died on approximately June 1, 2010.

RIP Zoe

"At the time of Zoe's death," lawyer Mikel R. Miller wrote in Davidson's civil complaint, "almost all of her ribs had at least one fracture. At this time, no rational person could believe that Zoe's injuries were caused by the actions (to which Davidson) admitted."

On Jan. 11, 2013, after a four-day criminal trial, a jury acquitted Davidson of all charges.

"Being accused of torturing and maliciously killing an animal caused (Davidson) extreme humiliation and embarrassment, and damaged (her) reputation," the lawsuit alleges. "Knowing she was not that kind of a person, and that people thought she had harmed an animal, caused her to suffer anxiety attacks and made her fearful of going out in public."

Davidson moved to the Salem area, Miller said, and suffers anxiety whenever she returns to Deschutes County.
(Oregon Live - Jan 15, 2015)

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