Washington: Sex offender Tyler Young, 28, gets six months in jail for beating dog (but he was going to jail for that amount of time anyway for not registering as a sex offender)

WASHINGTON -- A Lynnwood man who brutally beat a dog with a golf club has been sentenced to six months in jail for the attack.

Questa, a small German shepherd, suffered trauma to her left eye, and the beating left her blind, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Lisa Paul wrote in court papers.

Tyler Patrick Young admitted in May that he caused Questa’s injuries. He pleaded guilty to first-degree animal cruelty, a felony. At the same hearing he also pleaded guilty to two counts of failure to register as a sex offender. Young was 16 when he was convicted of second-degree rape.

Young, 28, recently was sentenced to about two years in prison for failing to register his address with the sheriff’s office, as required for convicted sex offenders. A judge agreed that Young could serve his sentence for the dog beating concurrently with his prison time for the registration violations.

He faced up to a year in jail for attacking Questa. Paul called the dog assault “awful” but acknowledged that the defendant quickly took responsibility for his actions.

Everett police received multiple 911 calls Feb. 29 from people near Everett and Harrison avenues.

The dog’s owner told officers that she was getting into her car, and Questa followed her out to the street. Young and his father were arguing on the other side of the intersection.

The dog ran across the street, stood at the back of the men’s car and barked, court papers said.

Young got out of the car with a club and went toward the dog. The dog’s owner yelled for the men to leave Questa alone, but Young chased after the dog and bludgeoned her.

Another witness reported seeing Young swing the club, knocking the dog to the ground. She said a second blow left the dog unconscious. She told police she heard the defendant’s dad yell, “Get that dog. Get that dog,” Paul wrote.

The woman told police the dog wasn’t aggressive toward the men. Questa was cowering and backing up as the men ran at her. Another witness told police the dog was running back home when Young chased her into the street and hit her with a golf club.

The dog didn’t try to bite anyone, police were told.

A veterinarian reported that Questa’s wounds were caused by multiple blows.

At the time of the incident, Young was under the supervision of the State Department of Corrections and had a warrant for his arrest.

(Herald Net - Aug 31, 2016)

Earlier:

• Washington: Vet’s report disputes man’s claim he struck dog only once in Everett incident

Washington: Vet’s report disputes sex offender Tyler Young’s claim he struck dog only once in Everett incident

WASHINGTON -- The Lynnwood man told police he struck the dog with a golf club because the small German Shepherd charged him.

Tyler Patrick Young, 28, claimed it was a single blow to the dog’s head. A veterinarian later reported that the dog, Questa, was hit multiple times, including a powerful blow that left her blind.

Prosecutors have charged Young with first-degree animal cruelty, a felony. He pleaded not guilty to the charge late last month. He remained in the Snohomish County Jail.

Everett police received multiple 911 calls Feb. 29 from people near Everett and Harrison avenues.

The dog’s owner told officers that she was getting into her car, and Questa followed her out to the street. She said Young and his father were arguing on the other side of the intersection.

She told police her dog ran across the street, stood at the back of the men’s car and barked, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Lisa Paul wrote in charging papers.

She said she saw Young’s father reach inside the car and pull out a golf club. He allegedly took a swing at the dog. She said Young got out of the car with a club and went toward the dog. She yelled at the men to leave Questa alone. She told police Young chased after the dog and clobbered him in the head.

She said her dog didn’t try to bite anyone.

Another witness reported seeing Young swing the club, knocking the dog to the ground. She said a second blow left the dog unconscious. She told police she heard the defendant’s dad yell, “Get that dog. Get that dog,” Paul wrote.

The woman told police that the dog wasn’t aggressive toward the men. She said the dog was cowering and backing up as the men ran at her.

Another witness told police the dog was running back home when Young chased her into the street and hit her with a golf club.

Police arrested both men about four days later.

The older man told police the dog aggressively approached him while he was walking around to the driver’s side. He said he swung a golf club at the dog to protect himself. He said his son chased the dog away. He told police the dog charged his son as he was walking back toward the car. He said his son hit the dog once.

Young told police a similar story.

“This was inconsistent with what the witnesses and (dog’s owner) told police,” Paul wrote.

A veterinarian reported that Questa suffered trauma to her left eye. The attack left her blind. The veterinarian said the dog’s wounds were caused by multiple blows.

At the time of the incident Young was under the supervision of the State Department of Corrections and had a warrant for his arrest. He had failed to show up for a court hearing after being charged with failing to register as a sex offender. Young was 16 when he was convicted of second-degree rape.

(Herald Net - April 11, 2016)

TYLER PATRICK YOUNG PARTIAL CRIMINAL HISTORY:
Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Charge:

• PAROLE VIOLATION

Arresting agency:
Olympia DOC Parole
Charge date: 08/27/2015

Mugshots.com ID: 8321408
Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Age: 24
Gender: M
Race: Caucasian
Hair Color: Blonde
Height: 5′11″-6'
Weight: 185 lb
Eye Color: Blue
Full Address: 5600 block of 204 ST SW LYNNWOOD, WA 98036
City: LYNNWOOD
Zip: 98036
Offender ID: 1126553
Registration #: 04009
Level: Level II
Arresting Agency: Snohomish County Sheriff's Office
Comments: According to official documents Young pled guilty in Snohomish County Superior Court Juvenile Division on 10/29/2003 to one count of Second Degree Rape. He was sentenced to 15 to 36 weeks confinement in the Juvenile Rehabilitation Administration and 40 hours of community service. This sentence was suspended and he was granted a Special Sex Offender Disposition Alternative. He served two days confinement and received community based sex offender treatment.

This conviction was the result of Young sexually assaulting an unknown 18 year old female victim who was unconscious at the time. He met the victim at a party and sexually assaulted her after she passed out from intoxication. Young's SSODA was revoked on 08/21/2004 due to failure to make progress in chemical dependency treatment. Young is no longer on supervision. -- Does this remind you of Brock Turner???

Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Arrest date: October 29, 2003
Arresting agency: Slagit County, WA
Charges:

• 9A.44.050 - Rape in the second degree., View this statute 10/29/2003
• 9A.44.130(11)(A) - Sex offender - felony - fail to register View this statute 10/14/2011

Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Arrest date: Sept 28, 2012
Arresting agency: Snohomish County Sheriff's Office, WA
Charge:

• PAROLE VIOLATION / RSO VIOL - FELON FAIL TO REGISTER

Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Arrest date: April 24, 2013
Arresting agency: Snohomish County Sheriff's Office, WA
Charge:

• PAROLE VIOLATION / RSO VIOL - FELON FAIL TO REGISTER

Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Arrest date: January 3, 2014
Arresting agency: Snohomish County Sheriff's Office, WA
Charges:

• 9A.44.132: SEX/KIDNAP OFFENDER - FAIL TO REGISTER (0191600) Bail: $10000.00
• 9A.44.132: SEX/KIDNAP OFFENDER - FAIL TO REGISTER (0191600) Bail: $871.00

Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Arrest date: August 28, 2015
Arresting agency: King county, WA
Charge:

• PAROLE VIOLATION / RSO VIOL - FELON FAIL TO REGISTER

Name: Tyler Patrick Young
Arrest date: March 4, 2016
Arresting agency: Snohomish County Sheriff's Office WA
Charges:

• ANIMAL CRUELTY 1
• RSO VIOL - FELON FAIL TO REGISTER
• RSO VIOL - FELON FAIL TO REGISTER
• PAROLE VIOLATION

Minnesota: Cody Haberman is accused of beating cat named Dipper with golf club and shooting it in the eye

MINNESOTA -- A Big Lake man has been arrested for animal cruelty.

Twenty-three-year old Cody Haberman was wanted in Otter Tail County after failing to appear in court.

Authorities say he shot a cat named "Dipper" with an airsoft gun, blinding the cat, at an apartment in New York Mills last November.

Haberman also allegedly hit the cat with a golf club.

Haberman had previously been charged with domestic assault and making terroristic threats.

(KVRR - March 3, 2016)

Arizona: Woman injured in dog attack

ARIZONA -- A Sierra Vista woman was bitten several times by dogs that escaped a fenced yard, according to the Cochise County Sheriff's Office.

Sierra Vista Animal Control and Cochise County deputies picked up the four dogs in the 300 block of North First Street and took them to the Huachuca City Animal Shelter.

The woman was bitten more than twelve times by the dogs, according to CCSO.

A neighbor used a golf club to defend the woman from the dogs. They then ran back to a home and into the yard.

CCSO is citing the dog owner with a vicious animal ticket and an animal at large ticket. They did not disclose the breeds of the dogs.

(Tucson News Now - ‎Jan 19, 2016)

Sparks woman accused of beating, strangling 2 cats to death

NEVADA -- A Sparks woman was recently arrested and accused of killing her two cats while believing them to be "demons" during a mental breakdown, police said.

Elizabeth Bergland, 35, faces two counts of willfully torturing and maiming an animal and one count of third-degree arson after police found her two cats dead in the front yard of her home in Sparks.

Bergland's mother had called police early last month saying her daughter was having a mental break down and had burned one cat, said Lt. Chad Hawkins. Police had responded to the call in the 500 block of K Street.

Upon arrival, officers found Bergland outside with her cats, Hawkins said.

"She was clearly upset… and she seemed to think that these cats represented the devil in some fashion, and that's why she did it," Hawkins said.

Police said they found one cat beaten with a golf club and the other strangled with an electrical cord and lit on fire, he said.

"With the help of some of her family, we got her in for a psychiatric evaluation," Hawkins said.

"In the next week or two, she was stabilized enough that we went to the judge and told him it would be better – since some of the help wouldn't be available in jail – for her if she was released, that way she can continue her treatment," he said. "Hopefully she stays stabilized."

Bergland had no previous history of criminal behavior or animal torture, but family told police she's had mental breakdowns in the past, Hawkins said.

Bergland was released from custody and is set for an arraignment at the Sparks Justice Court early next month.

(RGJ.com - Dec 10, 2014)

Dog attacks pregnant woman, 9-year-old son in Roseland

ILLINOIS -- A mother and her 9-year-old son are hospitalized after a pit bull attack Tuesday afternoon in the Roseland neighborhood.

The pit bull broke free from a neighbor's home near 113th and Yale and surged toward a 9-year-old boy down the street.

"My son ran up on the porch, he was hollerin'. When I opened up the door, the dog was maulin' him. I got a stick and started to beat the dog and got the dog up off of him," said Willie Wilson, father.

Despite a lot of blood, he was not seriously injured, officials said. But the dog wasn't done. Willie Williams says the animal then turned on his wife as she tried to save her son from the dog's grip.

"My wife was weak, my son was hysterical like he was going in a state of shock because that has never happened to either of them. She never seen her arm hanging open like that and he never knew he had holes in his body like that," Williams said.

 

Lasheta Amos, the boy's mother, is two months pregnant and hospitalized in serious condition with with significant damage to her arm. Her 9-year-old son Devon required stitches. Only when Devon's dad grabbed a golf club and started hitting the pit bull, did the dog let go.

"It's supposed to be the people's dog down the street. They are good people but I do not like what happened with their dog. That is very inappropriate," Williams said.

The dog's owner declined to speak with Eyewitness News. The boy and his mom who were attacked are expected to be treated and released from Christ Hospital.

(WLS - Dec 23, 2014)

Is one month in jail enough for the man who beat his two cats to death with golf club?

PENNSYLVANIA -- An Erie man who told investigators that he beat his two cats to death with golf clubs after feeling "betrayed" by them was sentenced on Tuesday to serve prison time for his actions.

Christopher J. Bisbee, 32, was sentenced to one month to one year in prison, followed by a year of probation, after pleading guilty in July to a second-degree misdemeanor count of cruelty to animals.

His lawyer, Eric Hackwelder, had asked Erie County Judge Shad Connelly to consider giving Bisbee a probationary sentence.

Connelly ordered Bisbee to pay a $100 fine and court costs, including $263 in restitution to the Humane Society of Northwestern Pennsylvania; to perform 100 hours of community service; and to undergo anger management counseling and continue with mental health counseling. Bisbee is not permitted to own any domesticated animals while under supervision, Connelly said.

  

Take a good look at his mugshots. I'm sure you'll
be seeing him again on an arrest report.

Erie County detectives initially charged Bisbee with two first-degree misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty after an investigation by the Humane Society that was launched in June 2013, when investigators received a tip and found bodies of the two cats in Bisbee's trash.

Hackwelder told Connelly there was no excuse for Bisbee's actions, which he called "heinous" and "disgusting." But he noted Bisbee has no prior criminal record and sought treatment for "some underlying issues" that he never addressed.

Bisbee told Connelly he was sorry for his actions, and that he sought help through counseling and will continue with it.

Connelly noted Bisbee had told a counselor his cats had scratched his neck and face and put him in a fearful state, and after cleaning himself up and returning to the room, the cats approached him again and he beat them to death.

"Surely there was a more humane and appropriate way to deal with these cats," Connelly said.

(GoErie - Oct 7, 2014)

Delaware: "[Beating him with a golf club] only made him madder.... He was going crazy. That dog was very aggressive."

DELAWARE -- Police shot and killed a dog – described as a pit bull – in Wilmington about 5 p.m. Monday after it attacked a woman and child, authorities said.

The woman, believed to be in her 30s, was taken to Christiana Hospital in serious condition with dog bites to one upper arm, New Castle County Paramedic Cpl. Abigail E. Haas said. No information was available about the child.

Police were called at 4:53 p.m. to 10th and Bennett streets after reports of "a loose pit bull actively attacking people," said Sgt. Andrea Janvier, spokeswoman for the Wilmington Police Department.

Aaron Reddick, 27, of Van Buren Street, said he was driving by and pulled over when he saw the dog "lock on the woman's arm and start shaking her."

A man was hitting the dog's body with a golf club, he said, "but that only made him madder.... He was going crazy. That dog was very aggressive."

Reddick said he did exactly what he saw in a YouTube video about how to get a dog to stop attacking somebody:

"I pushed everybody out of the way and took off my belt, wrapped it under the dog's throat and lifted up hard to cut off his air supply." The video said that would cause "a gag reflex, like they're going to throw up," he said.

"It really did work," he said. The dog let go of the woman's arm and other people went to help her, he said.

Reddick stayed with the dog and told another man to get a towel and twist it, run it under the dog's neck and pull up to help keep pressure on its throat, he said. They also used the shaft of the golf club across the top of the dog's head, pressing down, he said.

At one point, Reddick said, the dog "tried to bite my forearm so I lifted him up from under the neck and slammed him to the ground and put my knee on his back."

Although he focused mostly on the dog, Reddick said, he did see the victim's arm.

"It was mangled," he said. "There was a lot of blood."

When city police arrived, they intervened with those holding down the dog and –fearing for their safety as that of other people in the area – shot and killed the dog, Janvier said.

The dog is believed to have been a pit bull or pit bull mix, said Kevin Usilton, executive director of The First State Animal Center and SPCA, which handles dog control statewide.

The agency has no information about the dog's owner or veterinary records, Usilton said.

The dog's remains – collected at the scene by animal control officers – are to be turned over to the state Division of Public Health for testing to determine whether the dog had rabies, he said.

The attack comes nine days after a pit bull was shot and killed by Newark police after the dog attacked 8-year-old Emily Ruckle at her home in the city.

She is at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, where doctors reattached her right arm. Rescuers credited her sister Megan, 15, saved for saving Emily's life by calling 911 and applying pressure to her arm to keep her from bleeding to death, her family said.

In May, 4-year-old Kasii Haith was killed by pit bulls at the home of a family friend west of Felton.

Last year, 686 dog bite cases were reported in New Castle County, 325 in Sussex County and 260 in Kent County, according to Delaware Animal Care and Control statistics.

(The News Journal - Oct 7, 2014)

6/13/13: 2 Ashland dogs in custody after family's cat mauled to death

VIRGINIA -- dogs are in custody in Ashland, after being accused of mauling a family's cat to death.

Mary Fisher-Sabatini couldn't hold back tears over her 16-year-old cat Ida, envisioning its agonizing death.

 


"She was viciously murdered at her home by animals that apparently the owners did not have control over," said Fisher-Sabatini, as tears rolled down her cheek. "She's never coming back."

Fisher-Sabatini says her next door neighbor saw the attack as it was going on, last Friday. That woman ran outside with a golf club, and was able to chase the dogs away. However, it was too late for Ida.

Another neighbor, Chelsea Normal, watched as Hanover County Animal Control took two dogs into custody, off Henry Clay Road.

RIP Ida

"The dog was out front across the street, and I saw (its owner) catch him. Then, a few minutes later, a fire truck showed up, animal control," described Normal of the scene.

The Hanover County Sheriff's Office says both dogs have different owners. One of the animals lives across the street. Its owner says his dog wasn't involved, and has since hired a lawyer.

Meantime, Normal says she's watched the man's dog run loose before.

"We've had (the dog) in our yard a couple of times," continued Normal.

Hanover County Animal Control will keep both animals, until any vicious dog charges are pressed. A judge could order both dogs to be put down. However, Fisher-Sabatini wouldn't get solace from that.

"We've known her all of her life. Whatever happens to those animals is not going to bring Ida back," she said.

So far, both dog owners have been charged with not having their dogs on a leash. More serious charges could be pressed, once the medical report comes back on the cat's body.

(WWBT - June 13, 2013)

Wisconsin: Horrific pictures of turtle bludgeoned to death with a GOLF CLUB while laying her eggs in a bunker

WISCONSIN -- A snapping turtle has died after it was found bludgeoned in a sand bunker on a golf course.

The female turtle was found on Monday after being beaten with a golf club at the Delbrook Golf Club in Delavan, Wisconsin.

She had holes in her shell and was also struck in the right eye. The turtle, aged between 10 and 13 years old, was looking for a place to lay her eggs when she was attacked.

Surgery was planned for the turtle on Tuesday but vets only gave her a 40 per cent chance of survival.

Jeannie Lord, director of the Pineview Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, announced yesterday that she had died overnight. She said the turtle's injuries were too extensive for it to survive.

The Department of Natural Resources was called to the golf course at about 9:30am on Monday.

The beating is believed to have happened between 7:30am and 9:30am.

The Global Conservation Group of Watertown has offered a $1,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has also offered a total of $5,000.

(Daily Mail - June 13, 2013)

Kalamazoo Co. man arrested for beating dog to death

MICHIGAN -- A Kalamazoo County man with a violent criminal record is arrested Monday night, accused of beating his neighbor's dog to death.

The dog's owner tells us animal control ordered an autopsy and found it had died from blunt force trauma.

The dog's owner says she was no threat to anyone. His Shih Tzu weighed just nine pounds, was blind and had no teeth.

She loved it out here. It's one of her favorite spots, so we decided to bury her here with my mom and grandma.
   
Nathan McDaniel laid to rest his life-long companion today, his 15-year-old Shih Tzu named Baby Girl.

McDaniel says his dog was murdered last week, after he got into an argument with his neighbor.

“Sometime that night, her boyfriend, Christopher Brooks, beat our dog with a golf club,” he says. “He beat her to death right here in the yard, stomped on her, kicked her.

The next morning, McDaniel says he found his dog here, lying on the sidewalk two blocks away.

“I started crying, I was hurt really bad,” McDaniel says. He called animal control. Since then, McDaniel says Brooks has threatened his wife, Robin, and their 16-month-old son.

“He said, ‘I killed your dog, what more do I have to do to you guys?’” according to McDaniel's wife, Robin Sleeman. “He said, ‘Next will be your son.’”

Brooks is no stranger to violent behavior. Records show he was convicted of assault with a dangerous weapon last year and has several other assaults dating back to 2004.

Earlier Monday, Newschannel 3 attempted to ask Brooks about the dog attack allegations, but no one came to the door.

This family says they're relieved Brooks was arrested tonight. They want justice for Baby Girl.

“I hope he goes to prison for this, I do, I really do,” Sleeman says.

McDaniel says Brooks put up a fight when law enforcement came to pick him up about an hour ago.

He says Brooks was hiding in the basement and had to be dragged into the patrol car.

(WWMT - May 20, 2013)

Elderly pit bull attack victim recalls ordeal

CALIFORNIA -- Bruna Secco says she likes to take a two-mile walk every afternoon “to keep myself healthy and strong.”

The 76-year-old San Jacinto resident's afternoon walk on Tuesday, March 5, nearly cost her life.

Secco was attacked by a pit bull while walking along Commonwealth Avenue just a block from the end of her journey. The dog clamped onto the back of her right leg. Then the dog switched to her left leg, her right side and both of her arms.

Bruna Secco inspects wounds she suffered when a
pit bull attacked her Tuesday, March 5, in San Jacinto.

“I was petrified,” she said. “The more I tried to get him off, the more he was chewing me in other places. He rolled me around and bit me all over.”

The 130-pound woman tried to push the dog away with her hands.

“I was running out of strength to fight,” she said. “I thought this was it for me. I couldn't fight him any more, so he was going to eat me up.”

Secco said a teenage boy she thought had been walking two dogs, including the pit bull, without leashes “panicked and left.”

A man driving by stopped his car, “looked at me and drove off,” she said. A woman came by, stopped and called 911.

A witness said 10 to 15 people gathered around, but only three people helped rescue the woman.

Jose Reyes holds the baseball bat he used to help rescue a 76-year-old
San Jacinto woman attacked by a pit bull Wednesday, March 5.

Two of them, the director of a Christian rehabilitation home across the street and a resident of that home, grabbed a baseball bat and a golf club and used them to fend off the animal until authorities arrived.

“I owe him for saving my life,” Secco said of Jose Reyes, the home director who heard the screaming, grabbed the aluminum bat and brought help. “I am going to go see this man as soon as I am able to and thank him for what he did.”

Secco's son, Ed, exchanged hugs with Reyes on Friday afternoon in a brief meeting at the home. Reyes told him residents had been praying for the woman, but did not know her name.

Bruna Secco, who has lived in the Blue Fountain mobile home park since November, was released from the hospital Thursday night.

She has broken ribs, torn tendons and bandages around both arms and on her legs. She said doctors have told her she will need physical therapy. She has difficulty sitting because of her leg wounds.

“I'm doing decent, considering,” she said.

The pit bull is in quarantine at the Ramona Humane Society shelter in San Jacinto.

A Riverside County Sheriff's Department spokesman said no charges are being sought against the owner of the dog.

(Press-Enterprise - March 8, 2013)

Earlier:

• Woman, 76, rescued from pit bull attack

Woman, 76, rescued from pit bull attack

CALIFORNIA -- Jose Reyes heard a scream Tuesday afternoon, March 5, and looked out the window of the group home he manages in San Jacinto.

Across the street, along an embankment near a Walmart parking lot, he saw a pit bull — its teeth clenched around the arm of an elderly woman — throwing her around like a chew toy.

“It had to be terrifying for her,” he said.

Reyes grabbed an aluminum baseball bat, and a resident of the Treasures of Darkness Christian rehabilitation home for former drug users and gang members grabbed a golf club. They ran to the woman’s rescue.

Hero Jose Reyes

The dog was believed to have lifted a latch to unlock the gate of a chain-link fence surrounding a home in the 200 block of Commonwealth Avenue, then attacked the 76-year-old woman, who was walking along the sidewalk on her way to a store.

“We heard some screaming,” Reyes said. “We thought there was a fist fight going on across the street. I happened to look (out of a window) and I saw a lady being dragged by a pit bull.

“The dog had the lady by the arm and was dragging her up and down” a 4-foot-high embankment adjacent to the shopping center parking lot, Reyes said.

He said the woman looked like she weighed about 80 pounds.

“The dog was tossing her,” he said.

A crowd of 10 to 15 people gathered to watch as the two men beat back the dog.

At one point, Reyes said, someone he believed to be related to the dog owner was tugging at the head of the pit bull to try to pull off the dog, but Reyes said it appeared only to further aggravate the dog more.

The woman, whose name wasn’t released, suffered severe puncture wounds to her side, arms and legs. She was stable at a local hospital Wednesday, according to Riverside County sheriff’s Sgt. Michael Canizales.

The adult male dog was taken to the Ramona Humane Society shelter in San Jacinto, where it was being held in quarantine for at least 10 days.

Jeff Sheppard, executive director of the society, said the dog’s owner had not yet been contacted. Canizales said the Sheriff’s Department is not seeking charges against the owner.

Sheppard said the shelter, which provides animal-control services in the area, had received no previous complaints about the dog.

Reyes, however, said neighbors had complained to animal control officials four or five times.

“The dog always gets loose,” Reyes said.

(Press-Enterprise - March 6, 2013)

Grand jury doesn't think kitten being beaten is worth of a felony charge

KENTUCKY -- A Richmond man accused of beating a kitten with a golf club was indicted Wednesday on a charge of misdemeanor animal cruelty.

 Gary L. Foster Jr., 33, was charged Aug. 17 after police say he struck a 3-month-old kitten with a golf club four days earlier, breaking both its front legs.

County Attorney Marc Robbins upgraded Foster’s charge in September to first-degree animal cruelty, which is a Class D felony punishable by one to five years in prison.

Because a Madison grand jury did not indict Foster on a felony charge, the case will return to district court for prosecution. Second-degree animal cruelty is a Class A misdemeanor, which carries of sentence of 90 days to 12 months in jail and a fine of no more than $500.

Animal lovers both locally and from all over have rallied behind the kitten, who was named Lucky.
The person who found Lucky, Rocky Alan Alexander, created a Facebook page that posted updates about the cat’s status and the progress of Foster’s criminal case.

Lucky was treated at Barnes Mill Animal Hospital, and donations from well-wishers paid for the kitten’s treatment. He is now living with one of the vet technicians who helped take care of him, according to his Facebook page.

On Monday, the Animal Legal Defense Fund issued a report that named Kentucky the “best” state to be an animal abuser for the sixth year in a row based on the state’s animal cruelty laws.

Kentuckians can be charged with felony animal abuse for fighting a “four-legged animal” for pleasure or profit, according to state law. Also, a felony charge can be applied if a person already has been convicted of misdemeanor animal cruelty and receives a second or subsequent charge where a cat or dog has been tortured and suffered physical injury.

A 2008 amendment to Kentucky law allows a person to be charged with a felony on a first offense if the animal suffers serious physical injury or death as a result of torture.

The national organization also based its findings on the strength of state laws covering basic standards of care for animals and if there were restrictions on convicted animal abusers obtaining new pets.

(Richmond Register - Dec 19, 2012)