NEW YORK -- A 31-year-old Canandaigua man has been arrested after his dog was found neglected.
The Ontario County Sheriff’s Office is charging Clarence Grover with felony aggravated cruelty to an animal.
The Ontario County Humane Society says a St. Bernard named B-Dog had a broken leg, which was left untreated for several months.
As a result, her leg became infected and she was unable to stand or walk on it, according to officials.
The Humane Society says B-Dog, believed to be eight or nine-years-old, was so emaciated that she was immediately transported to a veterinarian who recommended that she be euthanized to relieve her suffering.
Grover will appear in Manchester Town Court at a later date.
MICHIGAN -- A 12-year-old Newaygo boy who was critically injured in a dog attack near his home has been upgraded to serious condition, a Spectrum Health administrator said Friday.
Devin Bates was attacked by two dogs Tuesday, a couple of houses down from where he lives off 96th Street near Newaygo.
Rose Bates, the victim’s mother, said someone came to her house to tell her about the incident.
“A black truck came in our driveway and asked me if I had a son named Devin,” she said. “I said, ‘Yeah, it’s my boy. It’s my 12-year-old.’ He’s like, ‘Well, he’s down at the end of the road. He was viciously mauled by two dogs.'”
It was a horrendous attack that left Devin with gashes in his legs, arms and neck. The holes in his neck were three to five inches deep.
“You’re mad and upset and you want to just take care of your kid. … I feel like I should’ve been there even though there’s nothing I could’ve done,” said Devin’s father, Matthew Bates.
Rose Bates said her son underwent two five-hour surgeries, including one to repair his neck and face and reconstruct his ear. The other surgery involved moving a vein from his left leg to his right leg to repair a main artery.
Devin was connected to a breathing tube, which his parents said was expected to be removed Thursday. He could be in the hospital another week as his wounds heal.
Devin’s parents say the dogs broke off their cables at their home. They said they’ve been concerned about the care of the dogs for some time.
“That’s my kid. He’s up there (in the hospital) because somebody didn’t take care of their dogs. It’s not right,” Matthew Bates said.
Newaygo County Undersheriff Chad Palmiter said Devin was the only witness and the department is still trying to piece together what happened.
“Where the child was at, how it was occurred, where the dogs were at at the time, whether they were chained up. It’s our understanding according to (the) homeowners that the dogs were chained up when they left and that when they got home, they were not,” Palmiter said.
The owner was issued two citations for a dog at large with no license.
It’s unclear whether the Saint Bernard and Labrador retriever mixes will be euthanized; Palmiter said the county is holding the dogs in quarantine. The owner turned over a third dog, identified by authorities as a pit bull, to police Thursday.
VIRGINIA -- Linda says she can still smell blood in her home.
At the end of May, she adopted a 1-year-old pit bull named Blue from Forever Home Rescue and Rehabilitation Center in Virginia Beach. The dog attacked and killed her 90-year-old mother that night.
Linda has asked that her last name not be used for fear of harassment on social media.
The fatal attack is the latest in a series of problems that have plagued Forever Home in recent years, sometimes making headlines.
The rescue adopted out a dog that killed a cat, a dog died in their care, and they’ve been cited with code violations, among other issues.
Toni Enright, one of the center’s owners, declined to comment for this story when reached in person. Phone calls to another owner, Jamie Cochran, were not returned and efforts to reach her in person were unsuccessful.
Forever Home’s mission centers on troubled dogs. Its website touts one- to three-month training for dogs with “uncontrollable behavioral problems.”
What training and certifications do these people have - these people who claim to be able to pull aggressive, biting dogs that have bitten children, adults, pets, possibly killed other animals -- and they magically change their behavior and adopt them out? Why are shelters handing them dogs that they know are vicious, aggressive??
In December 2013, the state approved Forever Home as a shelter that could take in and adopt out animals. It has locations in Norfolk on 25th Street and in Virginia Beach a couple blocks from Town Center.
“Every dog in our program becomes a part of our balanced pack of 30 dogs who help teach proper social skills and social behavior. (Forever Home) is the last stop for dogs who have made mistakes, have human or dog aggression, or are having trouble finding/staying in a home,” their website reads.
Troubled histories On May 11, 2016, the rescue adopted out a 1-year-old pit bull named McLovin. Within hours, McLovin had mauled a cat to death.
The owner surrendered him to Norfolk Animal Control, which quickly euthanized the dog, prompting outrage from animal lovers and pit bull rescue advocates online.
In a statement last year, Norfolk spokeswoman Lori Crouch said staff had “researched the dog’s history and discovered repeated failed adoption attempts with other out-of-state agencies and a rabies certificate that was altered to change the dog’s breed and age.”
VICIOUS ST. BERNARD GIVEN TO FOREVER HOME BY THE LEXUS PROJECT
Four years prior, Forever Home was involved in the case of Alchemy, a Saint Bernard which bit people five times while in foster care and was set to be euthanized.
According to a 2012 Pilot article, a judge ruled the dog could live if he was kept in a sanctuary outside Virginia. Alchemy wound up at Forever Home, which at the time was operating as a sanctuary on Knotts Island in North Carolina.
A June 2012 court order from Chesapeake said Alchemy was supposed to be placed in a “sanctuary or rescue” outside of Virginia, not in a private residential dwelling.
This is a huge, unaddressed problem - not just with this rescue. Remember Onion, the Rhodesian Ridgeback mix that killed the little boy in Nevada? The Lexus Project attorneys wore them down in court and finally they handed the killer dog over to them. Where is it now? Anyone in Nevada who let them have the dog bother to keep track?
Onion, with the little boy he mauled to death.
Onion was supposed to be euthanized, but Nevada
handed him over to a rescue. Clarke County's only demand?
That Onion be taken out of Nevada. Where is Onion today?
Another dog that Sheriff Joe Arpaio saved - that had severely mauled a little boy. The Pit Bull's name was Mickey and nutters blamed the little boy saying he took the dog's bone. Sheriff Joe promised to house the Pit Bull forever - well, guess what? Sheriff Joe isn't there any more and the new Sheriff is not open to the animal crimes unit or the animal facilities that Sheriff Joe had running. So where's the Pit Bull today???
WHAT QUALIFIES ENRIGHT AND COCHRAN TO BE GIVEN VICIOUS DOGS? What training does Enright and Cochran have that deems them experts in changing the behavior and desires of vicious dogs??? They took a course at PetSmart? They worked for a dog trainer for a year? They watched online videos? They've been around and trained their own animals all their lives? Seriously, what makes them the experts they claim to be? “With our expert understanding of dog behavior,” Forever Home advertised, “we developed techniques to raise a pack of calm, submissive dogs. Previously labeled as too aggressive, most dogs slated for euthanasia that end up at Forever Home are eventually rehabilitated and later adopted without another sign of aggression.” According to animals 24-7, "Enright and Cochran evolved from kennel attendant and bather/groomer into self-described behaviorists, recounted Liz King of the Virginian-Pilot, by “studying ‘pack’ theory, watching documentaries and reading about ‘Dog Whisperer’ Cesar Millan.” Seriously. That's just what I said. They watched some videos... that's how they've convinced shelters - and the courts - around the country to hand over vicious dogs!
This article shows just how delusional everyone is - not just Enright and Cochran, but the judge who released this dog to them in the first place and all those involved. Apparently, the damn dog attacked the owner's own attorney when they released him from the shelter:
The women say they've found their calling. Others would see it as obsession. Whichever the case, there seemed always to be room for more. More strays with fearful eyes and litters looking for homes. More castoffs rescued from the pound. More misbehaving pups dropped off by friends – and eventually, a few paying clients.
And now, a giant, 2-year-old outlaw from Chesapeake. Alchemy did come with cash - $1,000 to cover his care until his future gets sorted out. The money came from people who donated to his cause through the Lexus Project, the New York-based organization that saved his hide in court.
The 150-lb dog was decreed a danger to the community, locked in a cage at animal control and marked to be put down. Stubbs contacted the Lexus Project, a network of dog-loving attorneys who offer no-charge legal assistance to canines on death row BURY COURTS IN LEGAL PAPERWORK AND DRAG OUT CASES INVOLVING VICIOUS DOGS UNTIL THEY FINALLY GIVE IN AND HAND THE VICIOUS DOG OVER TO THEM INSTEAD OF DOING THE RIGHT THING AND HAVING IT PUT DOWN. THEN THE LEXUS PROJECT SQUEALS THAT THEY'VE 'SAVED ANOTHER ONE' AND SECRETLY PLACE THE DOG SOMEWHERE NO ONE IS TOLD. MAYBE RIGHT NEXT DOOR TO YOU?
The group got Alchemy a stay of execution and persuaded Chesapeake General District Judge Timothy Wright to release him on a $2,500 bond. Granting a dog bail, said Wright, was "breaking new ground."
Alchemy, however, didn't seem to grasp his good fortune. Animal control officers say that when a Lexus Project attorney came to fetch the dog, Alchemy turned his teeth on his benefactor. But the lawyer was reluctant to squeal on his client, so officers shut the gate and called police.
"It got a little confrontational," said Kelly O'Sullivan, spokeswoman for the city's Police Department. "The attorney finally showed them his arm - you couldn't see much - but he refused to show his leg."
In the pen at Forever Home, Alchemy – all wagging tail and lolling tongue – doesn't look like a menace. Enright steps to his side and slips a hand inside panting, fang-filled jaws.
"Believe me," she says, "if a dog this size wants to kill you, he's going to kill you."
Aggression is a symptom of an underlying issue, Enright says. In Alchemy's case, losing his home: "Dogs don't rationalize. They react. It's our responsibility to understand."
As for Alchemy, on June 21 he was offered a deal, a court order that grants a reprieve if he stays in a sanctuary setting outside Virginia and isn't placed in a residential home.
The Lexus Project – now Alchemy's official owner – signed the agreement, but the dispute continues. The group says it considers the restrictions temporary, and that with enough good-time served, Alchemy can be paroled into society - maybe even make his way back to Ken Stubbs.
At the Chesapeake city attorney's office, Grady Palmer disagrees. He wrote the agreement and insists it's permanent: "This dog is not safe to be around. If he were to wind up in a private home, I would consider that to be a problem."
VICIOUS ST. BERNARD THAT JUDGE ORDERED WAS TO 'NEVER TO LEAVE SANCTUARY' ADOPTED OUT TO FAMILY. WHAT IS THE CHESAPEAKE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS???
* * * * * *
One month later, in April 2017, Forever Home convinced Tia Walke to adopt the the one-year-old Pit Bull named Blue. However, almost immediately the dog began behaving aggressively towards her and her family. She returned the dog to the Forever Home Rescue Rehab Center after just two days.
It was just a few short weeks later, in May 2017, that Forever Home found another person to adopt the Pit Bull. They took the dog home and it killed Linda's mother. Linda beat the dog on the head with a hammer, but could not stop the dog - it had selected its victim and it was not going to stop until she was dead.
He had been in a New York City municipal shelter, sent there after biting a child in December. The bite broke skin on the child’s thigh and buttocks, according to shelter documents obtained by The Pilot.
Animal rescue organizations often save dogs from euthanasia at these shelters in New York and adopt them out to private homes. Pennsylvania-based Animals Can’t Talk Rescue & Adoption took Blue and placed him in a foster home.
Edie Hardy of Maryland, a volunteer with Animals Can’t Talk, helped care for Blue and took him to Forever Home in Virginia Beach in February. She said Blue “had little manners and little self-control” and grabbed things with his mouth a lot, but that shouldn’t be considered a bite.
Blue “never did anything to hurt anybody” during his time in her home, Hardy said. Animals Can’t Talk officials determined that Blue needed additional training because of his erratic behavior with a foster family in New York, she said.
Hardy said she’s surrendered about six dogs to Forever Home over the years and the services provided at the center were “pretty good.”
“What they do isn’t easy, they’re not taking the easiest dogs,” she said.
Hardy said she gave Forever Home all of Blue’s documents from the New York City Animal Care Centers, including those detailing his bite history. But Linda said the documents she received from Forever Home didn’t include the bite history.
Linda showed The Pilot three pages that she says was everything the shelter gave her and it did not include any behavioral history. She said Forever Home representatives told her that Blue had been adopted out of Forever Home twice and returned both times, at least once out of fear of the dog’s behavior.
Forever Home has not been cited for what happened with Blue. Animal advocates and rescue professionals said there are no laws or regulations compelling rescue groups to disclose dogs’ histories, although experts said shelters should do so, especially for aggressive dogs.
Linda has a lawyer and is evaluating her legal options.
“Inadequate” veterinary care
Since May, the center has been searched by police and cited for code violations.
Police executed search warrants at the locations in Virginia Beach and Norfolk on June 8, just over a week after the fatal attack. No charges have been filed and the information contained within the search warrants has been sealed.
On June 9, the Norfolk location was cited for violating the city’s fire, property maintenance, zoning and stormwater codes. Forever Home was told to reduce the number of animals on the property; Crouch, the Norfolk spokeswoman, said it was not licensed to serve as a kennel and could house only four dogs at a time.
Like other shelters, Forever Home gets inspected by the state veterinarian’s office to ensure animal welfare. It received clean reviews in late 2015 and 2016. A February 2015 report, however, cited several issues at the Virginia Beach shelter.
The report says Enright took a dog named Delbert to a vet after staff told her Delbert was bit on the ear by another dog at the shelter. Enright told the inspector the shelter had started using Tom Wood as their primary source of veterinary care that same month. The reports also say Wood took Delbert to his home where he had a surgical table and gas anesthesia.
Wood concluded Delbert likely was kicked in the abdomen, the report says, but the only treatment Wood gave the dog was cleaning the bite wounds and telling Enright to keep him quiet and separate from other dogs.
Delbert died the next day. In the report, the inspector described the veterinary care as “inadequate.” The reports do not indicate Delbert’s exact cause of death.
Since 1997, Wood has been brought before the Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine five times for potential violations of codes of conduct and the law. There is no indication the board took any enforcement action against him outside of a few hundred dollars in fines and a 2006 order to go into an intervention program for mental, physical or substance abuse, from which he was later ejected.
Efforts to reach Wood at his home in Virginia Beach were unsuccessful. Wood has been licensed to practice in Virginia since 1992.
That same shelter inspection report from 2015 says Forever Home’s Virginia Beach shelter was cited for keeping 77 dogs in unventilated conditions, holding five dogs in unsafe enclosures and giving an unsterilized dog to Imperial Kennels in Suffolk for breeding purposes.
Financial matters
Forever Home’s owners have had their own legal troubles.
Both Enright and Cochran were charged with felony embezzlement in early 2012 for offenses between December 2010 and May 2011.
Court records say they were stealing veterinary supplies from Owl Creek Veterinary Hospital on Birdneck Road in Virginia Beach to use in their own efforts to rescue dogs.
A bail determination sheet in Cochran’s file said she had faced charges of animal cruelty and larceny in North Carolina, but both had been dismissed.
Dismissal of a charge means nothing - it could be that they were given diversion or they dropped one charge in an effort to get a guilty plea on another charge.
The pair pleaded guilty to misdemeanor embezzlement under an agreement. They received a suspended one-year jail sentence and were ordered to pay $452 each in restitution to Owl Creek and fines of $253 each.
Enright and Cochran were also banned from Owl Creek and ordered to remain on good behavior for two years.
Forever Home has been registered as a 501c3 nonprofit organization since 2011. Most nonprofits file a Form 990 with the IRS every year, but since 2011, Forever Home has filed the abbreviated 990N, which is reserved for groups that bring in less than $50,000 annually. It discloses little about the organization.
According to the center’s website, Forever Home’s behavior training courses range from $1,000 to $2,000 per dog depending on the length of time and types of behavior. Surrendering troubled dogs for Forever Home to later adopt out costs $4,000 per dog, the group’s site said.
Forever Home is still in operation. As of July 5, its website said the facility had 19 dogs up for adoption.
UNITED KINGDOM -- A woman who was filmed having sex with dogs at parties has been spared jail.
Carol Bowditch had sex with a St Bernard, a black Labrador and an Alsatian at parties where owners would watch women have sex with their dogs.
But the 64-year-old was spared jail at Lincoln Crown Court after claiming she did not know that bestiality was illegal.
According to The Mirror, Bowditch's crimes came to light following an RAF Police investigation into the horrifying sex parties, which were advertised on a bestiality internet forum.
Women would have sex with dogs before having sex with their male owners.
When her home was searched police found a DVD and a USB stick containing film of her with dogs.
Victoria Rose, prosecuting, told Lincoln Crown Court: 'When the DVD was analysed it was found to contain extreme images.
'Those images portrayed persons committing penetrative sexual acts with dogs.
'Also included were images of this defendant herself carrying out sexual activity.
'Included was an eight minute and 59 seconds video of Mrs Bowditch engaging in vaginal and oral sex with a St Bernard dog named Oscar.
'When the defendant was interviewed she admitted she had penetrative sex with dogs. She admitted it had taken place over several years. She claimed that she unaware it was illegal.'
The court heard there were at least eight photographs of Bowditch having sex with dogs and some 30 moving images.
Bowditch, from Evedon in Lincolnshire, admitted a charge of having sexual intercourse with an animal between 13 November 2011 and 25 November 2014.
She also admitted possession of 37 extreme pornographic images on 21 March 2016.
Daniel Galloway, 65, of the same address, admitted aiding and abetting Bowditch to have intercourse with an animal.
He also admitted charges of making indecent images of children, possession of a prohibited image of a child, distributing 1,861 indecent images of children and possession of extreme pornography.
His sentence was adjourned to a later date.
Her defense attorney James Gray told the court: 'She is 64 and has no previous convictions. Both she and Mr Galloway have suffered considerable public humiliation. They have been ostracized by their friends and family.'
Bowditch was given a community order with 12 months supervision and a 16 week night-time curfew.
The maximum she could have faced for having sex with a dog was a two year jail sentence.
Judge Michael Heath told Bowditch: 'What you engaged in was first of all unlawful and secondly disgusting.
'I am told that you have received public humiliation as a result of the publicity that this case has attracted. That does not surprise me.'
GEORGIA -- Dozens of pets found living in deplorable conditions. One day later, their owners are charged with three counts of animal cruelty.
News 3 was the only station there when they were arrested. he talked to deputies and the couple about the accusations.
“You think you should be arrested?”
“Nope,” said Lynn Chinni.
But Lynn Chinni was arrested, and so was her husband Chris.
CHOICE QUOTES
"My family's been targeted by the Sheriff's Office," said Chris Chinni
When asked about all the urine and feces all over the floors, Chris Chinni said, "That's because she didn't have time to clean it up yet"
Both now facing charges of animal cruelty.
“When we entered the residence we went in, there was feces urine everywhere in the house. It was as bad of a house as I've ever seen,” explained Cpl Tommy Williams of the Effingham County Sheriff’s Office.
Inside that house, 97 different dogs, cats and guinea pigs.
“There was an adult St Bernard there that had lesions on all four of his legs,” said Cpl Williams. “One was to the point it had pus coming out of it. Some of the others were skinny, full bellies which is a sign of worms. Some of the other animals appeared to have mange.”
Lynn Chinni said she knows there were a lot of animals, but she has a good reason.
“I do a rescue and i have PTSD im a disabled veteran and they help me deal with a lot of stuff. My next door neighbor’s been helping me re-home them and that’s simply what i’ve been trying to do,” said Lynn Chinni.
“My family has been targeted from the Sheriff’s office,” said Chris Chinni.
That’s just part of what Chris Chinni had to say as he was being put in handcuffs by Effingham County Sheriff’s.
“97 animals is a new one to me because I just had 3 mamas that just had puppies at one time and my wife has been working with rescue units to get rid of those,” explained Chinni.
“Ok so its 70 animals. that’s still a lot of animals.”
“I'm not going to deny that. But as far as animal cruelty goes, no.”
“what about the fact there’s feces all in the house?”
“That’s because when they came to the house yesterday she didn’t even have a chance to clean up the house yet.”
“You say the environment those animals were in was ok.”
“I’ll tell you what,” said a defiant Chinni. “You can walk into my house any other time and there’s not a problem period. My wife takes very good care.”
“We just went to court not that long ago and it was tossed out. And here they are terrorizing my family.”
“He was cited in January for no proof of rabies and keeping of animals,” responded Williams. They were fined in Magistrate Court and are currently making payments on fines now. Those charges were not dropped.”
Since the Chinni’s were cited in January, investigators say the number of animals inside their home has doubled.
“I’ve been in his house three times,” said Cpl Williams. “The three times I’ve been in his residence its been in the same condition it was in yesterday.”
“We have since found out that Coastal Harbor Pet Rescue has reached out to them, to try to help them to take some of them,” explained the Corporal. “Because it has been a commonly known problem here.”
The couple’s teenage daughter was also taken by the Department of Family and Children Services, and they could face cruelty to children charges.
The animals are at the Effingham County shelter to determine if they are healthy and able to be adopted.
“These animals they are just like kids, they do not have any means of fending for themselves,” said Williams. “They have to depend on their owners for food water shelter. They are dependent at whoever owns them. Our way at looking at this is if you own an animal, you are going to have an animal, its just like a child, take care of it.”
Petition Lynn Chinni demanding the local shelter become "no kill"
"I currently do rescues at my place of residency and if I can't adopt any of the fur babies out, they are forever at home right where they are"
Hello everyone. I am a PTSD suffering, disabled veteran living in Effingham County, GA. The local animal shelter for our county is currently a kill shelter and I would like to put a complete and full stop to this even if I have to dedicate my own time and resources to do so. Animals are adoptable....no matter their condition, shape, size, and/or any other condition they may have or suffer from. They are loveable just the same. They can be adopted out if the time is taken and the right resources are given.
Will you be the chance they deserve? Are you willing to sign their life away or sign a petition to make our shelter a non-kill shelter so that all animals are given a chance for a forever loving home? A week is not enough to find a good home...sometimes it takes longer for the right fit to be found....can we all please give them more of a chance than what they have now? I'm willing to do so, are you?!?
I currently do rescues at my place of residency and if I can't adopt any of the fur babies out, they are forever at home right where they are. Please help me keep this in place and to change our shelter to a no kill shelter.
MICHIGAN -- A Clawson man is in jail for animal cruelty after he failed to contest charges that he broke two of his St. Bernard puppy’s ribs, but the dog caught a break and has been adopted into a new home.
Rishi K. Joshi, 26, was sentenced Monday before Troy 52-4 District Judge Kirstin Nielsen Hartig on the charge, which stemmed from an incident police investigated in late September 2016.
The charge is a misdemeanor and Joshi was ordered to spend 15 days in Oakland County Jail and pay more than $5,200 in fines and probation costs.
Joshi has to be on probation for two years, complete 200 hours of community service and have no contact with any animals.
Clawson police turned the 13-week-old dog over to the Oakland County Animal Shelter after they investigated Joshi at his apartment in Clawson.
Neighbors concerned about hearing the puppy crying constantly called officers.
Clawson Police Lt. Scott Sarvello said officers went to the apartment Sept. 26 and while they were there tried to engage the dog and pet him.
“When they tried to pick the dog up it started whimpering and it was clear something was wrong,” Sarvello said. “They assumed the dog had some sort of internal injury.”
The St. Bernard pup was taken to a veterinarian in the area who discovered the dog had broken ribs.
“After we found the dog had been injured it was never returned to (Joshi),” Sarvello said.
The Daily Tribune published a story about the incident after the suspect was arraigned Oct. 3 and people began calling Clawson police and the county Animal Shelter wanting to adopt the young St. Bernard.
“There were people calling from all over the state,” Sarvello said.
The shelter cared for the dog, named Bella, while Joshi’s animal cruelty case made its way through the court.
When police first showed up at Joshi’s apartment on Gardner Street they said he was intoxicated. Police started an animal cruelty investigation after the suspect said he may have stepped on the dog, police said.
The county animal shelter and pet adoption center releases no information about people who adopt animals, but the dog now lives more than 50 miles away near the St. Clair River in St. Clair County, according to an official familiar with the case.
“Bella was adopted at the end of December,” said Tatum Eieson, an attendant at the shelter. “Animal cruelty case can take awhile to resolve. But Bella is doing well now and that’s all that matters.”
Rishi Joshi didn't even get the 93 days in county jail. Instead, he got 15 days and they'll probably let him serve it on the weekends so it won't affect his own life and burden him.
TEXAS -- The Collin County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the public’s help after a family dog was shot to death in Anna earlier this week.
Two men, parked on County Road 368 in a white pickup truck, were seen firing gunshots toward a home around 4 p.m. Tuesday, according to a CCSO press release.
They shot at two family dogs, a Saint Bernard and a Great Pyrenees.
The Saint Bernard, named Chico, was later found dead with a bullet wound in his neck.
Sheriff’s office investigators said the truck fled southbound on County Road 368, but nothing more was immediately known about the suspects.
Anyone with information about the suspects is asked to call Investigator Lanier at 972-547-5182 or submitting a tip on the Collin County Sheriff’s Office website.
NEW MEXICO -- On Nov. 6 there was a dog attack in the Square H subdivision in Edgewood. In response to that incident, the residents of that subdivision have proposed changes to Edgewood’s animal ordinance.
These proposed changes were presented to the Edgewood Town Council at its Dec. 7 meeting.
“These are the recommendations from those that spoke and not the recommendations from the town. I do not know fully what they will bring as far as proposed changes,” Edgewood Police Chief Ron Crow said via email.
Crow added that the town staff has identified some areas for improvement in the current ordinance and is looking at all the information on the law including localized statistics.
“We are making every effort to ensure that the needs of the community are met as well as looking after the welfare of the animals. This has been a topic of great debate in our community and by no means do we want this to become a ‘public degrading’ of select animals and their owners,” Crow said.
First of the residents to speak was Edgewood resident Timothy Fleming.
“A recent attack on two pet dogs and a person in our neighborhood and the subsequent response by the animal control authorities to mitigate the future danger posed by attacking dogs have convinced us that changes must be made in order for our community to be a safe place for our families,” Fleming said.
Among the ideas that Fleming and other residents propose would be to ban Molosser dog breeds that are known for being dangerous. Molosser breeds include pit bull terriers, bull dogs, mastiffs and others.
They also would like the council to modify the multiple animal permit of 10 animals per household to a lower number; they would like a provision for owners of Molosser breed dogs to have a 10-foot high enclosure for their dogs that may include a top closure and they would like a modification to the definition of dangerous dog as it reads in the animal ordinance.
According to court documents, on Nov. 6 in the Square H subdivision, an suspected pit bull terrier and other dogs attacked a resident and his dogs while the resident and his wife were taking a walk. The resident had a minor cut to one of his fingers.
The resident who owned the dogs involved in the alleged attack has been in compliance with a sentence that was handed down by Edgewood Municipal Judge William White according to Crow.
The sentence included building a fence to keep their dogs in, reimbursing the victim of any veterinary bills, paying court costs and other requirements, according to court documents.
The dog that was determined to be the main actor in the alleged attack was ordered to be licensed as a potentially dangerous animal, according to court documents.
“The biggest injury wasn’t to (the victim’s) finger, it was to you all’s sense of well-being in your neighborhood,” Edgewood Mayor John Bassett said.
A call for public hearing has been placed on the Dec. 21 council meeting agenda.
In 2006, an Edgewood boy was attacked and seriously wounded by both a pit bull terrier and a St. Bernard. Both dogs were euthanized.
A neighbor of the boy said at the time that she wished that the town would ban pit bulls.
Two years earlier, then-Mayor Robert Stearley wanted to enact a pit bull ban after a dog was attacked by a pit bull terrier.
MICHIGAN -- A 26-year-old Clawson man was arrested after his St. Bernard puppy was found with two broken ribs in Oakland County.
Clawson police received calls from neighbors at Rishi Kunal Joshi's apartment building, expressing concern that they had heard a puppy crying "for days".
Police responded Sept. 26 to the apartment near 14 Mile Road and Main Street. They said they found Joshi drunk, and when one of the officers tried to play with the puppy, the dog wouldn't move.
Officers said the St. Bernard puppy, named Bella, howled in pain when they tried to pick it up.
Joshi agreed to take the dog to an emergency veterinary clinic in Madison Heights, but police wouldn't let him drive because he was intoxicated. He called a friend to drive him and the dog to the vet.
The veterinarian found that the puppy had two broken ribs, officials said. The woman who drove Joshi to the clinic got upset with him and left him at the vet's office.
Animal control took custody of the puppy and an officer drove Joshi back to his apartment.
The puppy is being treated for its broken ribs and is expected to be OK, officials said.
The woman who drove Joshi to the clinic said she was afraid to return to his apartment after she left him at the clinic.
When she went back the next day to get her car from the parking lot, she found that both of her side-view mirrors had been torn off the car. Police said the car had $700 in damages.
When police interviewed Joshi, he admitted that he was angry and tore the mirrors off the friend's car, police said.
Joshi also admitted that he "might have" stepped on the dog because he was intoxicated, police said. The dog won't be returned to him unless he's cleared of animal cruelty charges, officials said.
Joshi was arrested on charges of animal cruelty and malicious destruction of property over $200 but less than $1,000.
Animal cruelty is a 93-day misdemeanor and malicious destruction of property is a one-year misdemeanor. Both charges come with $5,000 bail.
For (allegedly) beating this puppy and breaking her ribs, Joshi is ONLY facing 93 days in jail.
However, for (allegedly) ripping the mirror off of his friend's car, he's facing 365 days in jail. Michigan isn't the only state that treats animals so poorly in the judicial system, though.
Joshi must have an alcohol tether attached before he's released. he cannot have a pet or animal while the case is ongoing, police said.
The puppy is still being held by Oakland County Animal Control.
THE MICHIGAN PENAL CODE FOR ANIMAL CRUELTY
Section 750.50
(2) An owner, possessor, or person having the charge or custody of an animal shall not do any of the following:
(a) Fail to provide an animal with adequate care.
(b) Cruelly drive, work, or beat an animal, or cause an animal to be cruelly driven, worked, or beaten.
(4) A person who violates subsection (2) is guilty of a crime as follows:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in subdivisions (c) and (d), if the violation involved 1 animal, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by 1 or more of the following and may be ordered to pay the costs of prosecution:
(i) Imprisonment for not more than 93 days
(ii) A fine of not more than $1,000.00
(iii) Community service for not more than 200 hours
THE MICHIGAN PENAL CODE FOR DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY
Section 750.377a
(1) A person who willfully and maliciously destroys or injures the personal property of another person is guilty of a crime as follows:
(c) If any of the following apply, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 1 year or a fine of not more than $2,000.00 or 3 times the amount of the destruction or injury, whichever is greater, or both imprisonment and a fine:
(i) The amount of the destruction or injury is $200 or more but less than $1,000.
WEST VIRGINIA -- A man accused of burning a Harrison County dwelling to the ground in 2013 to collect renter’s insurance, killing a dog inside, has been arrested on five felony charges.
Louis Ray Smith, 34, now of Beckley, was charged by Harrison Sheriff’s Sgt. Dixon Pruitt with first-degree arson, cruelty to animals, conspiracy to inflict injury to persons or property, burning insured property, and making a fraudulent claim to an insurance company.
Smith was remanded into the custody of Harrison Deputy Tim Ankrom for transport to the North Central Regional Jail after the defendant was unable to post the $100,000 set by Harrison Magistrate Keith Marple.
Smith burned the dwelling at No. 3 Rockwell Lane in Enterprise the evening of May 19, 2013, according to criminal complaints.
Smith had been served with an eviction notice the day before the fire, Pruitt has alleged. The defendant also reportedly owed about $5,000 back rent, Pruitt has alleged.
Smith obtained a renter’s insurance policy for “at or around $30,000” about a month before the fire, Pruitt alleged. The defendant also dropped off several items in the North View area of Clarksburg shortly before the fire, some of which later were reported as being destroyed in the blaze, according to Pruitt.
Witnesses also have said that prior to the fire, Smith discussed obtaining an insurance policy so he could burn the residence and receive a payout, Pruitt has alleged.
Smith also allegedly said that “it’s kind of funny the dog was left in the house,” Pruitt has alleged.
A 30-year-old Clarksburg woman has been charged with felony insurance fraud in connection with a May 19, 2013, fire that destroyed an Enterprise home and killed a dog, a Harrison sheriff’s sergeant said.
Hope Nicole Smith was jailed on a $10,000 cash bond and an allegation that she has violated parole following an initial appearance before Harrison County Magistrate Tammy Marple.
Smith conspired with a male (Louis Smith) to provide “a materially false statement in support of a claim to Geico Insurance Company for the amount of $23,937.88,” Sgt. Dixon Pruitt has alleged.
Smith “had prior knowledge of the fire and the insurance policy in reference to the fire, which occurred at her residence located at No. 3 Rockwell Lane, Enterprise,” Pruitt alleged.
Smith also was found with items that were reported to the insurance company as being destroyed in the fire, Pruitt alleged.
The sergeant is continuing to investigate potential other charges and said he also plans to arrest the male (Louis Smith).
