Alaska: April Gutierrez gets probation after letting her pregnant dog suffer with a rotted, broken foot full of maggots and dead puppies inside her

ALASKA -- A 49-year-old North Pole woman charged with causing severe physical pain and suffering to her pregnant and injured dog two years ago was sentenced Thursday to one year of suspended time and one year of probation.

The woman’s probation conditions also stipulate she not be allowed to own any animals or be around them without supervision.

According to charging documents, April Arlene Gutierrez was charged with animal cruelty for failing to care for her 2-year-old dachshund, Shebba, after the dog was hit by a car June 28, 2015.

Shebba’s left hind leg and right front leg were broken but Gutierrez let the dog suffer for a month until she started to chew her left hind foot off. 

Gutierrez and a friend took Shebba to Loving Companions Animal Rescue and staff there sent them to the Animal House Veterinary Clinic after they unwrapped Shebba’s foot and found it crawling with maggots.

Animal House staff discovered the bones and tendons of Shebba’s left rear foot were exposed, the flesh gangrenous and the foot was dangling and barely attached. The leg had to be amputated.

Shebba’s genital region was infested with maggots and a radiographic exam showed her puppies had been dead inside of her for about 48 hours, according to the complaint.

Dr. Deeanna Thornell, owner of the clinic, called Fairbanks North Star Borough Animal Control to report Shebba’s condition, and they in turn reported it to Alaska State Troopers.

Gutierrez had recently been evicted and troopers were unable to locate her until Dec. 16, 2015. She CLAIMED she didn’t take Shebba to the veterinarian because she couldn’t afford it but that the dog was fine, according to the charges.

A lighter sentence than hoped

Senate Bill 91, which was passed by the state Legislature in April 2016 as a way to reduce prison populations and recidivism rates by decreasing the penalties for a variety of crimes, prevented prosecutors from seeking a harsher sentence, Assistant District Attorney Allison Baldock said in an email Thursday.

“Generally under SB91, a court is not allowed to order either active or suspended incarceration in excess of 30 days for this class of offense.  However, as part of her plea, the Defendant also stipulated to 'the most serious' aggravating factor.  Because of that stipulation, the court was allowed to impose the maximum possible period of suspended incarceration.

“What the defendant did in this case was not only cruel, it was heartless.  Her treatment of the 2-year-old dachshund, Shebba, a sentient being who feels pain and experiences trauma, was sickening.

While the state would have liked to secure a sentence involving a period of actual incarceration for her conduct, that was thought to be very unlikely given that under SB91, even if she would have been charged with felony level animal cruelty, a court could not impose anything but suspended time for the typical offender.

“The State does, and will continue to, take animal abuse cases very seriously,” Baldock said.

Adjusting to a new life

Shebba was treated for her injuries and fostered for several months while she received rehabilitation and socialization training with the Animal Hospital’s trainer. The Douge family adopted her Dec. 22, 2015, and Shebba, renamed Lucy, is safe and happy in her forever home.

“They brought her out, and for me, it was love at first sight,” mom Heather Douge said, explaining that Lucy is “gorgeous” and looks very similar to her childhood dog, Pepper. “I said I’ll take her. She’s a good little girl and part of the family now.”

Douge said Lucy “does as good as she can and is happy with what she can do,” but definitely struggles physically.

“Missing that back leg hinders her getting over things,” Douge said. “She’s a dachshund mix and has short little legs anyway, but then you add missing a leg and being able to lift her one back leg over a shoe or something becomes very challenging.”

Lucy is able to run and is “quite quick for a three-legged little dog,” but can only run in short sprints. Long walks are hard for her so Douge sometimes carries her in a front-worn baby carrier.

Lucy is extremely nervous around cars and also needs to be the only dog in the family, but “knowing her trauma and her story, it explains how she responds to things,” Douge said.

Lucy gets along well with Douge’s children and husband, who are “very compassionate and loving toward her,” but her heart belongs to Douge. “I’m her person. When I come home, she makes a beeline to me and she has to greet me. She just howls and howls. She follows me around and sleeps in our bed, spooned up against our backs. I feel like she is in such the right place now.”

PREVIOUS ARREST: 
Assault - March 28, 2015

April Gutierrez, 46, of Fairbanks, was charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly punching a UPS delivery driver Feb. 9. The charge was filed Wednesday.

The victim told Alaska State Troopers that Gutierrez walked up to his truck on Persinger Drive and confronted him about a previous incident in which he hit Gutierrez’s son with his truck.

The driver was found to not be at fault in that incident, troopers said.

The victim told troopers Gutierrez climbed into his truck, yelled at him and punched him in the face. He said it gave him a headache and pain to his lower jaw once the adrenaline wore off.

(News Miner - June 13, 2017)

Earlier:

• Alaska: April Gutierrez charged with animal abuse after dog chews off own leg

Alaska: Oil company watches over pregnant polar bear under bridge until she has her baby

ALASKA -- A pregnant polar bear seeking to dig her maternity den chose an unlikely spot: a snow drift along a bridge leading to an artificial production island off the north coast of Alaska.

As a threatened species, polar bears are entitled to peaceful pregnancies and the operating oil company, Hilcorp Alaska LLC, took vigorous measures to make sure that happened. In consultation with federal wildlife authorities, Hilcorp restricted traffic on the causeway, monitored the den and kept things mostly quiet until mother and cub emerged three months later.

"The bear, wherever she decided to den, she's the emphasis," said Christopher Putnam, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service supervisory biologist.

Polar bears are listed as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act because climate warming is melting their primary habitat, sea ice. Short of action that effectively addresses Arctic warming, it is unlikely that polar bears will be recovered, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service.

Polar bears don't hibernate, but pregnant females create maternity dens to shelter newborn cubs. If a nursing mother is disturbed, she can abandon a cub. Upward of 50 percent of cubs don't survive their first year.

Oil companies working near known denning areas scout for bears using airplanes equipped with infrared cameras that detect bears in dens.

"Typically they pick locations that are away from oil field infrastructure," said Beth Sharp, Hilcorp's habitat and wildlife specialist, who has worked on Alaska's North Slope for nearly two decades.

A Hilcorp security officer in December spotted a hole in a snow drift along the 1.5 mile- (2.4 kilometer) causeway leading to Endicott Island, a production island about the size of 34 football fields.

The hole looked like a den entrance, but Sharp was skeptical. Workers borrowed an infrared camera from the company fire department to take a photo inside the snow drift.

"There was a bear-shaped lightbulb as clear as could be," Sharp said.

OIL COMPANY DID EVERYTHING THEY COULD NOT TO DISTURB HER

Hilcorp and the Fish and Wildlife Service worked out a plan to minimize disturbance. Workers on their way to Endicott were shuttled by bus instead of individual pickups. Hilcorp parked a heavy-duty snow-removal truck. Non-essential traffic stopped.

Advocacy group Polar Bear International and Brigham Young University, which are collaborating on a long-term denning study, monitored the den with a remote camera system.

Mother and cub stepped out of the den on March 18. They spent two weeks around the den, eventually marching off to sea ice to hunt for seals.

U.S. Geological Survey researchers say south Beaufort Sea polar bears increasingly use land for maternity dens as sea ice conditions change. That could mean more cases of polar bears giving birth near oil field infrastructure, Putnam said.

"We don't know if it's a trend, but that's why we have these plans," Putnam said.

(CBS46 - May 20, 2017)

Alaska: Police need your help finding these suspected animal abusers

ALASKA -- The Alaska State Troopers request the public’s assistance in providing information on the location of the individuals listed below. If you have information on the whereabouts of individual listed, please contact the nearest law enforcement agency.

This list contains active warrants issued by the Alaska State Court System in relation to AST cases. The Alaska State Troopers request that no citizen take action in these matters beyond contacting their local law enforcement agency. DO NOT TAKE THE LAW INTO YOUR OWN HANDS BY ATTEMPTING TO APPREHEND OR DETAIN THESE INDIVIDUALS. All warrants must be confirmed in the Alaska Public Safety Information Network before arrests are made.

If you have any questions or concerns, you may call the Alaska State Troopers or email us at warrants@dps.state.ak.us. If you wish to remain anonymous, you may contact the Crimestoppers program in your area and you may be eligible for an award.

The individuals listed are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. The list of warrants is updated daily.

AST Active Warrants for A Detachment


Full name: RUSSELL THOMAS WILLIAMS
Gender: Male
Current age: 30
Bail amount: $50,000.00
Description: CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Warrant type: FELONY
Warrant current as of: April 23, 2017
Court order: 3HO 13 446


Full name: DAIQUAN NAKEIM STEVENSON
Gender: Male
Current age: 26
Bail amount: $2,000.00
Description: CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Warrant type: MISDEMEANOR
Warrant current as of: April 23, 2017
Court order: 4FA141180


Full name: AUDREY ROSE HARRIS
Gender: Female
Current age: 31
Bail amount: $500.00
Description: CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Warrant type: MISDEMEANOR
Warrant current as of: April 23, 2017
Court order: 3KN 13 113

Alaska: This dog says goodbye to the Animal Control Officer that saved him before he went to his new home

ALASKA --This dog says goodbye to the Animal Control Officer that saved him before he went to his new home

This picture of Officer Leece and his words sum up the year for all of us:

“This is my favorite picture of 2014. Along with all the long hours we put in and calls we respond too, I think this picture really elaborates why we love what we do. It’s thanks from the animals who we all care about.”

- Anchorage Animal Care and Control Center's Blog

Alaska: James Nanalook arrested in overnight standoff charged with kidnapping, animal cruelty - accused of strangling his girlfriend's two cats

ALASKA -- The Anchorage Police Department (APD) said it received information Thursday morning that a woman was being held captive inside her home by her boyfriend, who did not live at the residence and was armed with a knife.

Police were also informed the suspect, 28-year-old James Roy Nanalook, had strangled the woman’s two cats, according to a release from APD.

According to police, when officers arrived at the house on the 1500 block of Karluk Street they set up a perimeter and began to try and make contact with Nanalook. Police said the female victim tried several times to leave the home but Nanalook refused to let her.

The woman eventually was able to escape the residence unharmed at 2:43 a.m., according to APD.

After leaving, the woman told police that they both had been drinking when they got into an argument after she found what she suspected to be empty drug packaging. The victim told police that Nanalook then held a knife to his own throat, making suicidal threats, but did not threaten her with the knife.

The woman also told police that Nanalook had strangled her cats but did not kill them.

An Anchorage police SWAT team and negotiators arrived on the scene. Nanalook refused to comply with police instructions and threatened to blow up the house using the gas line, police wrote.

As a precaution, officers shut off the gas line to the house.

At 5:50 a.m., Nanalook came out the front door holding a knife to his throat. He eventually dropped the knife and “was taken into custody without further incident” at 5:54 a.m., according to police.

Nanalook was taken to the Anchorage Jail and charged with kidnapping, animal cruelty, and probation violation.

(KTVA - March 23, 2017)

Alaska: Fairbanks Borough Assembly approves fines for unjustified killing of loose pets

ALASKA --  After the outcry over the recent killings of pet dogs, the Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly on Thursday night approved stiff fines for the unjustified killing of loose pets.

The assembly approved the ordinance on a 7-1 vote that will add monetary fines for animal cruelty and neglect to the borough’s list of citations. It also will require someone who kills or injures an animal to notify the owner or animal control within one day or face a $100 fine. The ordinance allows for self-defense from threatening or aggressive animals.

The legislation is a direct response to local outcry over the shooting of a dog December in Goldstream Valley. Details of the shooting are contested by the shooters and owner of the pet, but animal owners have been frustrated that the Alaska State Troopers have not investigated the case.

“It’s my understanding that the Alaska State Troopers aren’t necessarily actively enforcing these incidents whether it’s staffing, insufficient evidence or other reasons,” said Assemblyman Andrew Gray, who co-authored the ordinance with Presiding Officer Kathryn Dodge. “But if the borough has an option of an animal cruelty code, this gives people another route even if it’s a violation.”

The intentional killing of an animal except for hunting, trapping, the humane killing of one’s own animal and killing an animal in defense of life and property was once a violation of borough law, but the violation was removed in a revision of borough code. The assembly recently decided to reinvest in enforcing borough code.

More than 20 people testified on the ordinance and nearly all supported the measure. A handful of the supporters said they, too, had pets that were killed after getting loose. Mark and Jacquie Richards said their two retriever mixes, Teddy and Bear, were killed in North Pole some 30 minutes after getting loose on a walk but didn’t discover their fates until weeks later.

Maggie Richards was near tears while describing the ordeal, saying she believed the man who shot the dogs did it for sport and refused to offer an explanation, denying it altogether for weeks.

“My husband and son went over and confronted them man, finally, and he finally admitted and pointed to the direction where our dogs were,” she said. “He lied at least four times prior to this conversation. He never offered any explanation or apology. ... Current laws and ordinances do nothing to help the situation. Laws indicate it’s legal to shoot animals that are vicious and threatening. Teddy and Bear were not threatening. Our hearts are grieved, but justice has not been served.”

After the often-emotional testimony, Assemblyman John Davies immediately offered an amendment that increased the fines for animal cruelty. The amendment, which was approved 7-1 with Assemblyman Lance Roberts voting against it, increased the fines from $100 for the first violation to $500 and $1,000 for the second offenses, up from $200 and $300, respectively.

Roberts was opposed to the ordinance, saying that the intentionally unjustified killing of an animal is a crime and should be treated as such. He also warned that proving intent in these cases is near-impossible because the borough lacks police powers.

“What this ends up being, this unenforceable code, is it’s a feel-good ordinance,” he said. “We have this bad thing happen and all these other tragedies mentioned, and we’re going to create a law that doesn’t actually solve the problem or do anything and we’re not going to be able to enforce it with the powers we have. People are going to feel good because they thought we did something. I don’t think we need to fill our code with a lot of feel-good statutes.”

Davies countered that the measure is a “statement by our community” that the actions taken recently to kill nonthreatening stray dogs is unacceptable.

“It’s not going to be prevent all the crime from happening, everybody understand that, but what it does do it set a standard of behavior we expect them to follow,” he said. “And in those particularly egregious situations, it provides a tool to address the bad circumstances, and I feel that’s what the people in Goldstream Valley felt. There wasn’t a standard in place, we had taken it off the books.”

(NewsMiner - Jan 27, 2017)

Earlier:

• Alaska: Family says they’ve been wrongly blamed for Goldstream dog killing

Alaska: Family says they’ve been wrongly blamed for Goldstream dog killing

ALASKA --  The Goldstream Valley dog killing that led to a proposed animal cruelty law for the Fairbanks North Star Borough didn’t happen the way the dog’s owners described, said the mother of the boy who shot the dog.

Since her son mistakenly killed a loose dog while hunting in the Goldstream Valley, life has changed for her family, Sherril Mose said in an interview earlier this month.

Since the November dog shooting and a December neighborhood meeting hosted by the dog’s owners, her 13- and 14-year-old sons have been subjected to frequent harassment during their small-game hunts in the valley, Mose said.

More than a dozen times people have seen the teens along Goldstream Road and driven at them or stopped to yell at them, she said. Her older son also was reprimanded by one of his high school teachers for shooting the dog, she said.

In addition, dog owners Anita Rae Fowler and Hélène Genet have filed a small claims lawsuit against them. Fowler and Genet seek $1,500 for the death of their 14-month-old sled dog, Padouk. The owners have used the incident to lobby for a borough law, which goes before the Borough Assembly tonight.

Mose said she believes the responsibility for Padouk’s death lies entirely with Fowler.

According to the lawsuit against Mose’s family, Padouk ran away after Fowler let him off leash at the end of a walk on the O’Connor Creek trail.

Mose compares this case with someone letting a dog loose and then blaming its death on a driver who accidentally runs over the dog.  

“They broke the law and anything that came from that is their fault. Shame on them for neglecting their animal,” Mose said.

Mose said her older son shot an animal that was not wearing a collar.

The dog’s owners have said the dog was wearing a collar shortly before it was shot and accuse the boys of removing the collar after killing the dog.

The dog was an Alaskan husky that was easily confused with a coyote when it was shot at 50 yards, Mose said.

After approaching the animal, the boys saw it was bigger than they initially thought and assumed it was a wolf. It looked so much like a wolf that her grandfather, a taxidermist in Delta Junction, also believed the carcass was that of a wolf until he inspected its toenails and found the dog had a microchip, Mose said.

In her lawsuit, Fowler alleges the teenage hunters referred to the animal they shot as either a wolf or a coyote because they learned wolf hunting was illegal in the area and were trying to cover their tracks.

However, wolf hunting isn’t illegal in the area. Alaska’s hunting regulations allow harvests between Aug. 10 and May 31. The bag limit is 10 wolves.

Mose is bothered particularly by the comments of Alaska Rep. David Guttenberg, who suggested at the neighborhood meeting that Padouk’s owners report the teenage hunters to the Alaska Office of Children’s Services, the agency that operates the state foster care system.

Mose said her sons are responsible teenagers who follow the rules. Her older son has completed the state-required hunter education class and has successfully harvested wolves, coyotes and many snowshoe hares.

“He wasn’t out their misusing his gun. He wasn’t out there creating havoc. Look around, do I look like a neglectful mother?” she said in her tidy living room in the Birchwood Homes neighborhood.

The proposed borough ordinance up for a vote tonight would allow the borough to fine people who intentionally kill  animals, with exceptions, such as for legal hunting or trapping, the humane killing of one’s own animal or killing in defense of life and property.

(NewsMiner - Jan 25, 2017)

Alaska: Jin Bong So, who came to the USA more than 32 years ago, says he didn't know how to call animal control about a barking dog, so he shot it

ALASKA -- Anchorage school teacher Denise Rosales said that for weeks she couldn't figure out what exactly had caused small, bullet-like, bloody wounds on her 2-year-old Wheaten Terrier named Lenny.

"It was over a period of time. It wasn't just once that our dog had an injury and I didn't know what from," Rosales told an Anchorage judge in court last week. "I even asked my husband, 'I wonder if he got shot?'"

It turned out, Lenny had gotten shot while out in their backyard in a neighborhood near Lake Otis Parkway and East Dowling Road. Rosales' neighbor Jin Bong So admitted in court to firing his pellet gun at Lenny, a dog that he said barked nonstop.

Speaking in Korean and through an interpreter Wednesday, So said he lived in a duplex, between two barking dogs.

"My common sense told me, if a dog barked, (the) owner would stop the dog and would feel sorry about this," So said. "But it did not happen. I could not bear it any longer."

Rosales disputed her neighbor's account of Lenny's barking habits. She said she had never had any confrontations with her neighbors in the past about the family's dog.

On a day after the mysterious wounds had started to appear on Lenny's shoulders, Rosales said she was standing in her backyard looking at a bird on the fence when So came out and shot at it. She then realized that perhaps her neighbor had been firing at Lenny too, and called the police.

Lenny has lived through the injuries, Rosales said, but she told Judge Jennifer Henderson that the dog now cowers at any loud noise, "including bubble wrap, he's terrified of the pop sound."

She showed Henderson a 34-second video of her blond-haired dog hobbling in her home after being shot in the shoulder.

So was charged in September with three misdemeanors: animal cruelty, criminal mischief and unlawful use or possession of firearms. (Under city law, an air gun falls under the definition of a firearm, while under state law it does not). So pleaded no contest on Wednesday to all three charges.

His attorney, Chris Provost, told the judge that 69-year-old So, born and raised in Korea, moved to the United States, gained citizenship and had been a productive member of the community, working as a personal care provider and with only a charge of driving without a license on his record, from 32 years ago.

His attorney insisted that partially because of language and culture barriers, So "did not know" he could call animal control for help. He also insisted that So "did not know" that the pellet gun's projectiles would penetrate the dog's skin and "did not know" it was illegal to use a pellet gun within city limits.

I guess he also "did not know" he could walk over to his neighbor's house and ask them to keep their dog from barking so much?

"Had he known these community norms, it would have never come to this," Provost said. He said So was fired from his job because of the charges.

But city prosecutor Mike Shaffer asked the judge to send a strong message that So's actions were not acceptable and subject to consequences. Not only did So shoot a weapon within an Anchorage neighborhood but he did so to "deliberately shoot a defenseless dog," Shaffer said, both harming Rosales and endangering public safety.

"This wasn't a violent dog," he said. "This wasn't a vicious dog. This was a dog that the defendant felt was barking too much."

Judge Henderson ultimately found So guilty on all three charges. She sentenced him to 15 days in jail with more than 300 days suspended and three years probation. She fined him $1,500 and had him pay Lenny's vet bill of $250.80.

(ADN - Dec 12, 2016)

Alaska: Daiquan Stevenson, Russell Williams and Audrey Harris have open warrants for their arrest for animal cruelty

ALASKA -- The Alaska State Troopers request the public’s assistance in providing information on the location of the individuals listed below. If you have information on the whereabouts of individual listed, please contact the nearest law enforcement agency.

This list contains active warrants issued by the Alaska State Court System in relation to AST cases. The Alaska State Troopers request that no citizen take action in these matters beyond contacting their local law enforcement agency. DO NOT TAKE THE LAW INTO YOUR OWN HANDS BY ATTEMPTING TO APPREHEND OR DETAIN THESE INDIVIDUALS. All warrants must be confirmed in the Alaska Public Safety Information Network before arrests are made.

If you have any questions or concerns, you may call the Alaska State Troopers or email us at warrants@dps.state.ak.us. If you wish to remain anonymous, you may contact the Crimestoppers program in your area and you may be eligible for an award.

The individuals listed are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. The list of warrants is updated daily.

AST Active Warrants for A Detachment

Full name: DAIQUAN NAKEIM STEVENSON
Gender: Male
Age as of 10/26/2016: 25
Bail: $2,000.00
Charge: CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Warrant type: MISDEMEANOR
Court order: 4FA141180

According to thebump.com, he and Tuitui M. Williams created a baby registry at Babies R Us. They listed the due date as May 17, 2015 and their location as Anchorage, Alaska. Find the chick with his baby and you'll find him...

Public Safety Report Aug 22, 2014
TuiTui Moea Williams, 22, of Anchorage, was charged with DUI.

Williams was stopped about 3:29 a.m. Aug. 16 for driving a black Scion with a headlight out on the Steese Highway near Third Street, Fairbanks police said.


Williams told police she drank two shots of vodka. She registered a breath-alcohol content of 0.104.

TuiTui Williams was arrested again at the age of 24, on October 9, 2015. 

Full name: RUSSELL THOMAS WILLIAMS
Gender: Male
Age as of 10/26/2016: 30
Bail: $50,000.00
Charge: CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Warrant type: FELONY
Court order: 3HO 13 446

Full name: AUDREY ROSE HARRIS
Gender: Female
Age as of 10/26/2016: 30
Last known address: Bastien Dr, Kenai, Ak 99611
Bail: $500.00
Charge: CRUELTY TO ANIMALS
Warrant type: MISDEMEANOR
Court order: 3KN 13 113

Earlier:

• Alaska: Rebekah Edmunds, William Chapman, Russell Williams all involved in drugs, child abuse and the torture death of a dog named Bo Duke

Alaska: Four young men charged with illegally killing walrus, causing stampede that crushed walrus pups - from their Facebook pages, I'd say they've been tormenting, killing animals - and violating state and federal laws FOR YEARS

ALASKA -- Four men from a village in northwest Alaska have been charged with killing walrus that came ashore in 2015 and leaving the meat to rot.

Federal prosecutors filed five misdemeanor charges that accuse the men of either shooting walrus and taking only their ivory tusks or causing stampedes that crushed walrus pups at Cape Lisburne.

The four are Adam Sage, Michael Tuzroyluk Jr., Guy Tuzroyluk and Jacob Lane. Lane is charged with one count of causing a herd to stampede.

The misdemeanor counts carry a maximum sentence of up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Cooper by phone from Fairbanks.

The men are not in custody. They are scheduled for arraignment Nov. 14 in Fairbanks, Cooper said.

Online court documents do not list attorneys for the men. Sage does not have a phone listing. A message left for Michael or Guy Tuzroyluk was not immediately returned and a call to Lane was not answered.

 

 

All they do is kill, kill, kill -- with demented glee

Walrus use sea ice as a platform for diving to reach clams and sea snails on the ocean floor.

The appearance of walrus in large numbers on Alaska's northwest coast in late summer or early fall has accelerated over the last decade as climate warming has caused sea ice to recede far beyond the shallow continental shelf and over water too deep for walrus to reach the ocean bottom.

An estimated 35,000 Pacific walrus were photographed in early September 2015 near Point Lay, about 100 miles (161 kilometers) northeast of Cape Lisburne.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service this year has reported no large herds and say remnant ice floating in the Chukchi Sea may be plentiful enough to keep walrus off shore.

 

Grouped shoulder-to-shoulder on rocky beaches, walrus are subject to stampedes if startled by an airplane, hunter or polar bear.

In mid-September 2015, a person connected to a remote Air Force radar station photographed 25 dead walrus at Cape Lisburne, about 230 miles (370 kilometers) northeast of the Bering Strait.

Some had been beheaded. Twelve pups were among the dead.

Only Alaska Natives who live in the state may hunt walrus. Walrus killed only for ivory is considered wasteful and head-hunting is illegal.

Prosecutors say all four of the men charged last week were qualified to take marine mammals for subsistence purposes.

According to prosecutors, Sage, Michael Tuzroyluk and Guy Tuzroyluk shot a total of eight walrus on Sept. 2 or Sept. 4, 2015, removed tusks and left the meat to waste.

Lane, but not Guy Tuzroyluk, is charged with being along on the second day. On both days, the men are charged with walking on a beach toward several hundred walrus, causing the herd to stampede into the water and injuring and killing animals.

No words of respect animals they torment and kill.

(Associated Press - Sept 19, 2016)

Alaska: Shooting suspect Almando Abarca appears in court, new details emerge about Alaska State Troopers K9 death

ALASKA -- What started as a traffic stop in Palmer for tail lights not working ended in the death of an Alaska State Troopers K9 and an alleged gunman with a gunshot injury on Sunday.

AST said it's the first line of duty death for one of its dogs in the K9 program.

The last time any incident injuring an AST K9 happened in 1998 in Fairbanks, AST said.

According to court documents, an officer with Palmer Police Department attempted to pull over a green Geo sedan with four people inside.

The vehicle didn't stop and traveled through Palmer at high speeds and failed to comply with stop signs, documents said.

A pursuit quickly ensued south bound on the Glenn Highway at speeds of 90 miles per hour in a 45 mph zone.

That's when Alaska State Troopers joined in along a driveway near the Parks-Glenn Highway inter-change, according to documents.

AST said the sedan later crashed into a tree at slow speeds and the driver later identified as Almando Abarca exited the car with a pistol in hand.

As Abarca fled into a wooded area, AST and PPD followed on foot with the K9.

Documents said while officers attempted to apprehend Abarca, he opened fire at officers.

"K-9 Helo was shot several times eventually killing him," documents said.

Troopers said both officers fired back, hitting Abarca once in the shoulder with a non life-threatening injury.

Abarca was charged with four felonies including: two counts of Assault in the third degree, harming a police dog in the first degree, and failing to stop at direction of peace officer involving reckless driving.

Abarca's mother, Alberna told Channel 2 she believes drugs led her son down the wrong path, contributing to the incident.

According to the District Attorney's office in Anchorage, Abarca had been out on bail for a 2014 case involving burglary, theft, criminal mischief, tampering physical evidence, and false information.

Entering jail court in a sling, Abarca faced the judge on Monday.

The judge told him the maximum penalty for each new felony charge is 5 years and a $50,000 fine.

Vested Interest in K9s donated a vest to K9 Helo. He
should have had it on before being sent after Abarca.

While AST has not officially identified the K9 or officers involved, multiple law enforcement agencies including the Anchorage and Fairbanks Police departments expressed condolences on Facebook to AST for the loss of the K9 named "Helo."

AST would not comment on the case due to the ongoing investigation, but its statewide K9 coordinator, Captain Randy Hahn said all patrol dogs are assigned protective vests.

"They don't wear them all the time, it's situational it depends on the circumstances whether or not it's something of an obviously higher level of risk that the handler feels it's necessary to put it on," Hahn said. "There are some circumstances where we don't want the dog to wear a vest."

Hahn said sometimes handlers opt not to have the dog wear the vests because it creates handholds someone could potentially grab on to.

This is B.S. Would you say that about a human officer? "Don't wear your vest because the bad guy might grab it" It was a mistake. The officer's adrenaline was running and he simply made a mistake and didn't put it on the dog. I'm sure Trooper Havens is heartbroken, but don't give stupid excuses. Admit it and learn from it. 

Vested Interest in K9s also donated this vest. I
hope they start using them regularly from now on

AST currently has 6 dogs in its K9 program.

Hahn said the average training time for dogs in the K9 program is between 12 and 16 weeks.

"During that time we teach them a lot about what the dogs are capable of, what the decision making factors are that go into how to deploy and utilize a dog," Hahn said.

Hahn said he's been in contact with the handler associated with the incident in Palmer.

"Like any animal that is a service dog, it is a service dog, they become a member of your household even though they're a working animal and that's difficult, that's difficult on the handler," Hahn said.

The average life span for a K9 member's career is anywhere from 5 to 7 years up to 9 to 10 years.

Hahn said AST is discussing the possibility of replacing the K9 that worked primarily in the Mat-Su Valley.

"The average purchase price is somewhere in the neighborhood of about $10,000 and that's just for the dog," Hahn said.

Including training, equipment, and travel involved in obtaining a new K9, that total can be anywhere from $70,000 to $100,000 Hahn said.

Buying a new dog for the K9 program would come from state funding.

"Like everybody else our budget is pretty tight there are some potential avenues and alternatives we think are available to us and we're discussing right now what the best source might be," Hahn said.

Hahn said in the mean time, AST has received an outpouring of support from community members looking to offer some comfort.

Sandy Marcal, president and founder of Vested Interest in K9s Inc., said the group works to provide bullet and stab protective vests for agencies in need.

Marcal said the group located in Massachusetts has provided vests to AST and is receiving requests to offer even more.

"We have had requests all over the country asking if they could donate vests for the Alaska troopers, so there's been a huge outpouring of support all day long," Marcal said.

AST said the names of the officers involved in the Palmer shootout will likely be released on Wednesday per a 72 hour department policy.

(KTUU - Sept 26, 2016)

Alaska: Two face cruelty charges after stolen van is found with owner's dog dead inside

ALASKA -- Two valley residents are accused of cruelty to animals after a stolen van was discovered with the owner’s dog dead inside.

The 12-year-old Labrador-Golden Retriever mix, Flash, appeared to have died from a heat-related stroke, Alaska State Troopers wrote in a dispatch posted online today. Troopers say Gina Jones, 36, of Palmer, and Jason McDonnell, 35, of Wasilla, have been arrested in the case.

The pair faces charges of auto theft, theft, and cruelty.

Stolen on July 10 from Fireweed Road, the van was found three days later, on Wednesday, near Hideaway Circle. Troopers identified Jones and McDonnell, who have previously been convicted of felonies, as suspects. Both were being held on $30,000 cash-only bail, troopers wrote.

ORIGINAL STORY:
An Anchorage man working in Wasilla had his van stolen with his dog inside on Sunday. The 1999 Dodge van turned up on Wednesday but the dog was found dead inside, according to troopers.

The van was found abandoned in a lot on Hideway Circle off Hyer Road.

Owner Mark Thompson was too distraught to talk in detail about what happened but said he feared once his van was stolen the outcome for his dog, Flash, would not be good. Thompson worried that unless the thief released the dog or at least opened the windows the canine would suffocate.

“It’s been so hot out these last few days,” Thompson said.

One of Thompson’s co-workers said the men are working on a paving job between miles 35 and 40 of the Glenn Highway. The van was parked in a staging area and Thompson had left his keys inside in case someone needed to move the vehicle, said Todd Johnson.

Thompson left the windows down and the 12-year-old Labrador-Golden Retriever mix inside, said Johnson.

“It looks like the dog died of heat exhaustion,” said Johnson.

Scores of people on social media have expressed concern about Flash and hope that whomever stole the van will be caught and punished.

A $1,000 reward fund for information leading to an arrest has been set up, Johnson said.

Others have turned to social media as well to help find their missing dogs.

Big Lake resident Krista Fee is trying to track down who stole her American bull dog-boxer mix named Ruger from her property on Monday.

“It seems he was targeted,” Fee said.

Neighbors said they witnessed a man reaching into Fee’s yard and take Ruger. They provided a description of the man and his vehicle, described as a white Ford F-150 pickup, according to Fee.

“I’m persistent. I’m going to find my dog,” said Fee.

Ryan Montgomery of Anchorage is also reaching out on social media to try to find his American pit bull terrier, named Achilles, whom he thinks was snatched in Houston. Montgomery took the dog to Houston in late May to be cared for by his brother-in-law while he and his wife flew to the Lower 48 for medical treatment.

The dog went missing the next day.

“We’re guessing someone picked him up. He’s never run off before,” Montgomery said.

Montgomery said he and his wife drive out to Houston every weekend to search for Achilles and they monitor social media sites dedicated to lost and stolen pets.

“It consumes all my time.”

Anyone with information about Achilles is asked to phone Montgomery at 907-727-3490. There's a $1,000 reward fund to tips leading to Achilles' safe return.

Montgomery and Fee said they have heard that dogs are being stolen in the Mat-Su for use in dog fighting rings.

Trooper spokeswoman Megan Peters said troopers are not aware of any dog fighting ring in the area.

(KTUU - July 19, 2016)

Alaska: Puppy shooting death in Goldstream Valley sparks outrage online

ALASKA -- The shooting death of an 8-month-old puppy has ignited a firestorm on local social media pages and mobilized a Goldstream Valley neighborhood.

Lucy, a Labrador retriever mix, failed to return home after her owner, Dan Powell, let her out to relieve herself early in the morning July 2. Powell walked around his Jones Road-area property calling for her and quickly became concerned because it was unusual for her to roam.

He posted a “lost dog” notice with a short description of Lucy on the Goldstream Community Facebook page before heading out to search the neighborhood. He found her body a short time later.

“I’d only been away from the house 10 minutes or so. There’s not a whole lot of road there, and I just drove around in a circle. She was dead there in the road right at the end of my driveway,” Powell said during a phone interview late last week.

Lucy had been shot once in the forehead at close range with a .22 short round, which can be used in both rifles and pistols. Powell saved the shell casing and called Alaska State Troopers. They told him they’d record the incident happened but wouldn’t come out to investigate.

Social media outrage
Shortly after Powell discovered Lucy’s body, he posted a status update on the Goldstream Community group Facebook page reading

“Found my dog,” with several photos of her as she lay dead on the road.

Even though the post was taken down by site administrators soon afterward, multiple group members heard about the incident and started comments threads of their own on that page as well as the Fairbanks Animal Sales group Facebook page.

Several people commented about their dogs going missing in the same neighborhood, while others told of dogs shot in other neighborhoods around town. Community members whose dogs temporarily went missing posted urgent notices imploring others not to shoot their dog if found.

Some wondered if Lucy had been hit by a car and then shot to put her out of her misery, but Powell said she had no marks on her other than the bullet hole and powder burns on her forehead.

The overall tenor of the Facebook comments was anger at Lucy’s shooting and outrage that troopers weren’t investigating the incident.

Many vowed to contact troopers in hopes of getting some justice for Lucy and Powell. Goldstream Community group member Mara Bee posted the contents of a letter she said she was sending to troopers, Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly members and Animal Control.

In the letter, Bee condemned the killing and said there were “ample statistics that back up the fact that an individual who is wantonly cruel and violent to animals frequently extends that same violence and cruelty to his/her fellow humans.”

“Someone who demonstrates this kind of total disregard for a dog, who objectifies it into something simply to be used for target practice, is exactly the type of person we do not want in our community, town, or state,” Bee said in the letter.

Little recourse under the law 
When reached for comment last week, trooper spokeswoman Megan Peters said the information they had about Lucy’s death indicated there was nothing to suggest criminality because “just shooting a dog and killing it is technically not against the animal cruelty statute.”

Alaska statute defines animal cruelty as killing or injuring an animal with poison or a decompression chamber; killing or injuring an animal with the intent to terrorize, threaten or intimidate another person; knowingly inflicting severe or prolonged physical pain or suffering on an animal; or causing death or severe physical pain and suffering through neglecting to care for an animal.

Peters said she’s a dog owner herself and can sympathize with Powell and other community members upset about Lucy’s shooting, but troopers are bound to uphold the law as it is written.

“When it comes to an animal’s death, certainly we understand that people love their animals, but what people think should be against the law and what actually is against the law are two different things,” Peters said.

Though quickly killing a dog by shooting it is not considered animal cruelty, it can be considered a property crime as per Alaska statute because dogs are considered personal property in Alaska.

If a suspect can be found and a case proved, he or she can be prosecuted for felony third-degree criminal mischief if the dog was valued at $500 or more, fourth-degree criminal mischief if the value was more than $50 but less than $500, or fifth-degree criminal mischief if the value was less than $50.

Borough ordinances about dogs and other animals only address proper restraint of the animal, waste disposal, harboring diseased or annoying animals, release from restraint by a non-owner, and animal cruelty as it’s defined by Alaska statute.

Neighborhood comes together
About 40 Goldstream community members held a meeting Sunday night at Ivory Jack’s to discuss the issue. Trooper Scott McAfee, Rep. Dave Guttenberg and FNSB Director of Emergency Services David Gibbs were on hand to listen to their concerns and talk about what could be done about the situation.

McAfee said he’d collected the shell casing from Powell and would continue to monitor the situation, but couldn’t establish a crime at that point because he didn’t have enough information.

“If things continue to happen and we can tie it to others, then maybe we can establish a crime in this case,” McAfee said. “The reality of how the law’s set up, it is our responsibility as dog owners to keep our dogs secure.”

McAfee said the shooter, if found, could possibly be prosecuted for weapons misconduct if it could be proved he was shooting towards a residence when he shot Lucy.

McAfee urged everyone to keep their dogs secured “as best you can,” to be on the lookout for suspicious vehicles and to call in license plates numbers or patrol requests to troopers if they suspect criminal activity.

McAfee also said it would be a good idea to post cameras on driveways and roads and to organize a neighborhood watch because it could help with the growing burglary problem in the Goldstream Valley and other semi-rural neighborhoods.

Guttenberg praised the meeting attendees for a “big first effort” and encouraged them to continue.

“At the end of the day it’s the community taking control, putting up signs and letting people know you’re watching,” Guttenberg said. “It’s peer pressure and how you deal with the bad actors in your community.”

(Newsminer - July 13, 2016)

Alaska: Animal cruelty charges after Thomas Walker allegedly assaults dog

ALASKA -- A man faced a judge in Kotzebue Tuesday after he allegedly engaged in sexual conduct with a dog the day before.

Thomas D. Walker was arraigned on a charge of animal cruelty, a class A misdemeanor.

A man who said he knew Walker called the Kotzebue Emergency Dispatch Center Monday to report a man was allegedly sexually assaulting a dog, according to a complaint filed in Kotzebue District Court.

A Kotzebue police officer responded and saw a man pick a dog up and put it into a boat. When the officer announced his presence, the man dropped the dog and ran, according to court documents.

The dog’s owner came out and reportedly told the officer that “the man who allegedly assaulted the dog does that all of the time,” according to the officer's statement. Someone also told the police officer that neighbors had to bring their dog inside because of similar incidents.

The officer initially did not find the man who ran off, but found a previous booking picture of Walker and confirmed he was that same man.

A pre-trial conference is set for August 25.

(KTUU.com - June 28, 2016)

Alaska: April Gutierrez charged with animal abuse after dog chews off own leg

ALASKA -- A 47-year-old North Pole woman has been charged with animal abuse for allegedly causing severe physical pain and suffering to her pregnant and injured dog last summer.

According to a criminal complaint filed Monday in Fairbanks District Court, April Arlene Gutierrez and a friend dropped the 2-year-old dachshund off at the Animal House Veterinary Clinic on July 28, 2015.

Gutierrez reportedly told staff the dog, named Shebba, had been hit by a car a month earlier and was now trying to chew her leg off.

Dr. Deeanna Thornell, the owner of the clinic, called Fairbanks North Star Borough Animal Control to report Shebba’s condition. 

The bones of her left rear foot were exposed, the foot was dangling and she appeared to have chewed it off. The leg had to be amputated, according to the complaint.

Shebba’s genital region was infested with maggots and a radiographic exam showed her puppies had been dead inside of her for about 48 hours, according to the complaint. 

Animal control reported the abuse to Alaska State Troopers, who were unable to locate Gutierrez because she had been evicted. They were able to speak to her friend, who said Gutierrez put a splint on Shebba’s leg after she was hit but that the leg didn’t get better. The friend said she and Gutierrez tried to take Shebba to Loving Companions but staff there told them to take her to a vet.

Troopers located Gutierrez on Dec. 16, 2015. She told them Shebba got hit because she was chasing the tires of a car, and her leg got worse because she was running and trying to keep up with the other dogs.

She CLAIMED she didn’t take Shebba to the vet because she didn’t have any money and CLAIMED that the dog was fine. 

Gutierrez is charged with one count of misdemeanor criminal negligence for failure to care for an animal resulting in death or severe physical pain and suffering. The charge is a class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $10,000 fine.

Gutierrez has previous convictions for assault and driving under the influence.

(News Miner - April 19, 2016)

Juneau hiker who freed eagle and sprung traps sued by trapper

ALASKA -- The woman who freed a trapped eagle and was cited for springing other traps is heading back to court. In January, the State of Alaska dropped its case against Kathleen Turley. Now, the trapper is suing her for damages in small claims court.

Pete Buist is a past president and board member of the Alaska Trappers Association. He’s now its spokesman. Buist doesn’t know the Juneau trapper, John Forrest, but understands why he’s suing. He says if it were him, he’d do the same thing.



Kathleen Turley

“I say bravo for the trapper. The state won’t do what’s right. He should do what’s right,” Buist says.
Forrest, who’s suing Kathleen Turley for at least $5,000, declined to comment.

In January, Turley (formerly Kathleen Adair at the time of the events) says she sprang three traps on two separate days out of concern for the safety of dogs and hikers. She also freed an eagle that was caught in two traps. Despite her efforts to save the eagle, it was later euthanized.

Alaska Wildlife Troopers cited Turley for tampering with traps that Forrest had legally set, not for freeing the eagle. Hindering lawful trapping is a violation of state law that carries up to a $500 fine and 30 days in jail.

Turley wasn’t fined or jailed. At the arraignment, the state’s prosecutor used his discretion and advocated for the case to be thrown out, and it was.

Buist says members of the trappers association weren’t happy.

“I can fully understand why the lady rescued the eagle. I don’t have any problem with that whatsoever. And I think if she had just rescued the eagle, the trappers would’ve supported that. But she didn’t. She went back and tampered with the traps and broke the law,” Buist says.

Shortly after the State of Alaska dropped its case against Turley, Buist says several members of the trappers association complained to the attorney general’s office.

 

“And basically we were summarily dismissed as the fringe element and it fizzled after that,” Buist says.

Forrest has a lawyer, though it’s not required in small claims court. Attorney Zane Wilson is no stranger in the trapping community. He helped win a high profile case involving wildlife biologist Gordon Haber who freed a wolf from a snare in Tok in 1997. The biologist was being funded by an international animal advocacy organization. The trapper sued and the Tok jury awarded him $190,000.

Wilson is with Fairbanks firm Cook Shuhmann & Groseclose. He relayed through an employee he was “not authorized” to speak to me. Wilson is a lifetime member of the trappers association. Buist says Wilson’s uncle is Dean Wilson, a well-known trapper and fur buyer who’s been called the state’s patriarch of trapping.

A fellow Juneau trapper and a state wildlife biologist have said Forrest partially relies on trapping for income. The most targeted species in the Juneau area is marten. In the 2012-2013 season, the average price for raw marten fur was about $140. A state report says one even fetched $1,300. In Southeast, trappers also target mink, otter, wolf and beaver, among other animals.

Turley, who freed the eagle and sprung the traps, doesn’t think she owes Forrest anything. She says she’s never been contacted by him. Until she received the complaint in the mail in July, she didn’t even know his name.

“I was very surprised and confused. … I hadn’t heard anything about it. I had no idea that he felt there was money owed,” Turley says.

Traps and snares are inhumane and should be outlawed. Why is it ok for a
coyote, eagle, beaver, raccoon or skunk to suffer like this but we get outraged
when we see someone's dog caught in one?

Turley is Alaska-raised and has lived in Juneau for 30 years. She grew up fishing and hunting and shot a bear at age 16. As an avid outdoors person, she’s seen traps before, but had never tampered with any before the eagle incident. Turley says she’s not against trapping, but thinks it’s better suited for other parts of the state.

She says she didn’t damage the traps when she sprung them. Turley hasn’t been on the Davies Creek Trail where she found the eagle since.

This poor Beagle suffered horribly - just as wildlife do when caught in traps.

“I’ve completely avoided that area, which is a beautiful area, a very nice trail, but I haven’t gone anywhere near it. I don’t want anything do to with it,” Turley says.

She says the whole incident and the lawsuit have caused her a lot of stress and grief.

The trial is scheduled for Oct. 12. Turley doesn’t have a lawyer yet.

(Alaska Public - Sept 4, 2015)

Earlier:

• Hiker who freed trapped eagle due in court today
• Prosecutors dismiss case against woman who freed eagle from trap

Anchorage assembly member fined for unleashed dog attack

ALASKA -- On Friday, Anchorage Assembly member Tim Steele was fined $75 after his unleashed German shepherd killed an elderly small dog in Spenard on Tuesday.

Artist Kay Marshall had been walking on Hillcrest Drive with her 13-year-old diabetic Lhasa apso, Buttons, on a leash when they passed Steele’s home.

Marshall said Steele’s door opened and two large dogs bounded down the doorstep. One, an 8-year-old female named Bristol, ran across the street, grabbed Buttons, flipped her on her back and tore at her stomach, according to Marshall.

Marshall said she started screaming. Steele, who represents West Anchorage, appeared in the front door, ran over and pulled his dog away by the collar, she said. Steele, however, said he called Bristol by name from the driveway and she let go of Buttons. Steele said he then ordered Bristol into his car.

But with Bristol under control, Buttons stopped moving and appeared to be in shock, Marshall said.

Steele offered to take the injured dog to the vet, but Marshall said she wanted to take Buttons home first. She later took Buttons for medical treatment, but that night, the dog died.

Bristol, after two days of observation at Anchorage Animal Care and Control (the city pound), was declared dangerous enough to be required to wear a muzzle in public for at least the next two years.

A contrite Steele said he has taken responsibility for what happened, including paying Marshall's vet bill.

“It’s really a mistake I made that the dog has to suffer for,” Steele said Friday.

In an interview earlier in the week, Steele said he apologized to Marshall and said he was at fault. Both he and Marshall said Buttons, at 14 pounds, didn’t provoke the larger dog.

Steele also defended himself as a dog owner, saying: “I don’t think I was grossly negligent. I think the dog was under control.”

He said he typically lets his dogs out early in the morning in the front yard before getting in his truck, and they very rarely wander. Steele said he doesn’t walk his dogs in the neighborhood without a leash. He maintained his dogs were under voice control while in the unfenced front yard.

Animal control investigators concluded, however, that the dog was not under voice control, leading to the fine, said Laura Atwood, public relations coordinator at Anchorage Animal Care and Control. City law requires animals to be restrained at all times in public, except in a dog park.

Steele said he understood Marshall’s pain at her loss.

“I tried to make it as good as I could for her,” Steele said. He added that dog fights are “not a unique situation” in Anchorage.

On Tuesday night, when Marshall came to his house and told him Buttons had died, Steele wrote a check for $600 to cover the veterinary bill, he said.

He also offered to take Marshall to the pound to find a new dog, but Marshall declined.

“I don’t know if I ever … you don’t want a new dog, you want your dog,” Marshall said.

After Marshall filed a complaint with Anchorage Animal Care and Control, Steele said he took Bristol to the pound for observation. Boarding there costs several hundred dollars, he said. Atwood said the dog was released Friday after the investigation was completed.

Steele said he planned to change the morning routine for his dogs.

“I will not let them out of the house without being on a leash,” Steele said.

Marshall, who is 71, recently returned to Anchorage from California to live in her family’s house, which is close to Steele’s. She said Steele is well-intentioned. But she said dogs should be kept on leashes in neighborhoods, and Steele has the power to set those rules as an Assembly member.

“Why doesn’t everyone leash their dogs?” Marshall said. “My dog had no chance.”

(Alaska Dispatch News - Aug 7, 2015)

Little girl attacked by pit bull; neighbors beat with crowbar, pepper spray it and finally shoot it to stop the attack

ALASKA -- A 9-year-old girl was attacked by a dog today in an East Anchorage trailer park, prompting a neighbor to shoot the animal, police say.

Anchorage police received reports of the dog attack at about 12:43 p.m. at the Glencaren Trailer Park at 2221 Muldoon Road.

"A 13-year-old boy and 7-year-old girl were home alone with their pit bull.  The little girl slammed the front door which startled the dog and caused it to bolt outside," police wrote. "The dog ran approximately 30 yards to a playground where it immediately latched onto the top of another (9-year-old) girl's head."

 

Yes, yes... it's the kid's fault because wow she let the door slam. This normally placid pit bull went all PTSD on them and just HAD to find a little girl to attack. I have never heard a more dumb reason for trying to justify why a pit bull attacked a kid.

Hearing the victim's screams, several neighbors came to help. Two neighbors had guns and one carried a crowbar, police wrote in a news release.

"The man with the crowbar hit the dog several times with the bar but the dog did not let go," police wrote.  "Another citizen on scene then pepper-sprayed the dog but the dog maintained its bite."

A person then shot the dog once, in the head, and it let go of the girl, and was secured in its home, police said.

The condition of the dog was unclear based off of conflicting accounts from police. A sergeant on scene told Channel 2 reporter Mallory Peebles that the dog was killed by the gunshot.

Police released a press release shortly after reporting that the dog was taken in by Animal Care and Control, who are investigating.

The victim has been transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries to her scalp.

(KTUU-TV - June 19, 2015)

Troopers cite Dennis Thompson, 28, for intentionally running down, killing bald eagles

ALASKA -- Alaska State Troopers have cited a 28-year-old man from Oregon who they say ran over several bald eagles feeding on a roadway in Dutch Harbor on Sunday, killing two and injuring two others.

A jogger witnessed the act and reported it to Unalaska police around 9:30 p.m. A Ford truck had hit the eagles near the Aleutian city's landfill, said Megan Peters, troopers spokesperson.

"The eagles were feeding and the person in the truck plowed through them and kept going," she said.

Witness statements led troopers, who took control of the case, to identify Dennis Thompson as the driver of the truck.

Troopers cited Thompson for using a motorized vehicle to harass or molest game and accused him of "accelerating a Ford truck" through several bald eagles, killing two.

Why wasn't he charged with animal cruelty??

Peters said the injured eagles were not captured.

Thompson's arraignment is scheduled for June 30 in Unalaska District Court.

(Alaska Dispatch - June 11, 2015)

Man Saves Baby Moose From Drowning, Reunites Her With Mom

ALASKA -- Logan Snyder might not consider himself to be a hero, but there is no better word to describe him.

While out for a boat ride on a river near his home, the Wasilla, Alaska native spotted a furry brown mound cresting the water ahead of him. At first, Snyder thought it was just one of the many beavers living there, but he soon learned there was much more beneath the surface.

"As I got closer, it didn't dive, which is what a beaver always does. So I idled my boat and started looking at it, and I was like 'What the heck?'" Snyder told The Dodo. "Every once in a while I could see an ear come up, and I thought 'That's a moose calf!'"

The tiny animal, likely just a few days old, had somehow fallen into the narrow waterway and was struggling to stay afloat with only her nose breaching the surface. Along both sides of the river, the bank rose sharply, making it all but impossible for the moose calf to climb out.

About 200 feet away onshore, Snyder could see the calf's mother watching as he neared her baby.

Given how protective moose parents are, he was wary that she might become aggressive if he tried to help — but that was a risk he was willing to take.

"I could tell this thing was just gasping for air, so I brought my boat next to her, grabbed her and scooped her up," said Snyder. "I set her on the bow of my boat, and she just lay there for a long time. She was shaking real bad and coughing up water."

After several minutes passed, the moose calf stood up and approached Snyder, showing what could be described as a gesture of gratitude to the much larger stranger who had just saved her life.

"She was tiny. The whole moose was the same size as the five-gallon gas can I have in my boat. She probably only weighed 25 pounds," he said. "She walked over to me and started nuzzling me with her nose and I petted her a little bit."

The mama moose waiting for her baby

Although she was now safe from the watery fate that awaited her had help not arrived, Snyder knew the rescue was not yet complete.

"I idled up next to the bank, which was about four feet tall, and placed her up on top of the bank on the same side as her mom," he said. "She started walking towards her, and I got out of there so she would feel safe."

Snyder snapped one last photo of the little moose he rescued as she prepared to reunite with her mom — a moment made possible thanks to him. But the way he sees it, he was the lucky one:

"I'm glad I was at the right place at the right time."

(The Dodo - May 22, 2015)