ILLINOIS -- A cat set on fire in a July incident that led to criminal charges against four Indiana University students has died after $30,000 in veterinary treatment.
Police say the students used flammable liquid to set at least four neighborhood cats on fire, including Olivia, the animal who died this week after more than 11 weeks of skin grafts and other treatment.
The 6-year-old cat owned by Lesley Davis and Matt Murphy was burned over 40 percent of its body July 25.
Had they known the ordeal would be so painful and difficult for them and for the cat, they would have had Olivia [euthanized immediately], Murphy said. He estimated that $18,000 to $20,000 of the approximately $30,000 spent on the cat came from donations.
(Chicago Tribune - October 15, 1997)
