Nebraska: Nathan Mayer's dog tried to hide from him as he chased him around the house, beat and stabbed him to death. For that he'll spend 18 months in state prison

NEBRASKA -- Calling the crime outrageous, a judge rejected a plea for leniency Friday from an Omaha man who stabbed and beat his mother’s dog to death.

Douglas County District Judge Marlon Polk sentenced 34-year-old Nathan C. Mayer to 18 months in prison. Mayer also must serve 18 months of post-release supervision and is prohibited from owning or living with a pet for 10 years.

Mayer had pleaded no contest to felony animal mistreatment for killing the pet in November 2015.

“I’m shaking my head, because I don’t even know where to begin,” Polk said as he prepared to issue the sentence. “Even if this court were to accept your alleged version of what took place, this was just, this was so far out of the box, I don’t know, this was just outrageous.”

Investigators have said Mayer chased the dog around the house. When he cornered the dog, a German Shepherd named Shoes, he stabbed the dog repeatedly and beat him to death with dumbbell weights.

Mayer reportedly told Douglas County sheriff’s deputies that the dog had bitten him and he defended himself.

Deputy Douglas County Attorney Amy Jacobsen said Mayer maintained that “he simply stabbed Shoes because Shoes was biting him.”

 

 

But she said that the dog had broken teeth and fractured cheekbones and that bloodstains were left through two stories of the house, including behind a couch and end table where investigators believe the dog tried to hide.

Jacobsen said Mayer’s record did not make him a good candidate for probation. And she asked Polk to ban him from owning an animal for 15 years.

Mayer’s attorney, Ryan Thomas, suggested intensive outpatient treatment for Mayer.

Thomas said Mayer served in the Army, received an honorable discharge and is attending college. But Thomas said Mayer has had substance abuse problems.

“My client’s not a bad person,” Thomas said. “He made a bad decision. ... This year has been difficult for him. If he could go back and change what he did, he would.”

A bad decision? Seriously? He's got a lot of nerve to call the torture death of an animal a "bad decision".

Polk said he was concerned that if rage could cause Mayer to do those things to an animal, what might he do if he became similarly enraged at a person?

The prison sentence sends a message, said Mark Langan, vice president of field operations for the Nebraska Humane Society.

“I hope it will send a message that animal cruelty will not be tolerated,” Langan said, surrounded by dozens of Humane Society supporters who had filled the courtroom and the hallway outside.

Langan said people had answered the Humane Society’s call for support by sending more than 300 letters to Polk.

(Omaha.com - Dec 5, 2016)

Earlier:

• Nebraska: Nathan Mayer Jailed on Animal Cruelty Charge After Stabbing Dog to Death
• Nebraska: Bond set for Nathan Mayer, 33, accused of stabbing dog to death 
• Nebraska: German Shepherd tried to hide from man before its death, officer testifies

Arkansas: Charles Dugan, 20, arrested, charged with beating dog to death with a dumbbell

ARKANSAS -- Police arrested a man in Arkansas Wednesday after receiving reports that he had killed a dog with a dumbbell and left its body in a dumpster.

20-year-old Charles James Dugan was being held at the Benton County Jail on suspicion of felony aggravated cruelty to animals, according to jail records.

Lowell police were notified about the incident by a woman who had heard about Dugan killing the dog and dumping the animal, bloody clothes and carpet in a dumpster on McClure Avenue, the arrest report states. The dumpster is located in a trailer park.

Officers first found a bloody pillow, piece of carpet and ball cap in the dumpster, then after digging further they found the dog wrapped in an orange sheet along with a white button-up shirt.

The officers did not find Dugan at the address they were given and found out from neighbors that he had a new address at an apartment complex in Fayetteville, according to the report. One neighbor also brought up the dog and pointed officers to another witness.

That witness told officers he went to talk to Dugan about the dog after hearing he had killed it with a dumbbell. The witness said he talked to Dugan - who was rocking in a chair with a knife in his hand - about the incident and was told that the dog was put down in the back bedroom, according to the report.

The witness told officers he saw a blood trail and hair and a large amount of blood in the room.

Officers were told Dugan had the dog for about nine months and the animal had belonged to a friend who had passed away, according to the report.

After executing a search warrant, police found a 30-pound dumbbell in the bedroom and blood splatter on the ceiling and walls, the report states. They also found the area where a piece of carpet had been removed.

Jail records show Dugan's bond has not yet been set.

A map shows the Lowell Animal Shelter is about a four minute walk from where the dog was killed.

(KTLA - June 3, 2016)

Georgia: Unnamed man charged with animal cruelty for chaining his dog to a 25-lb weight

Note: The LaGrange News notes that they only list the names of people charged with felonies. I guess they don't think misdemeanors are important -- almost all animal cruelty cases are misdemeanors.

GEORGIA -- LaGrange animal control officers cited a homeowner and seized his pet after finding the dog chained and not moving on the side of a house in the 1400 block of Park Avenue about 4 p.m. Tuesday.

Animal control officers said when they checked on the black lab, they discovered the puppy had a 25 pound weight tied around its neck that made the animal unable to move.

Officers stated the weight was also covered with leaves and feces.

According to a police report, officers were able to free the animal from the weight and transported him to the animal shelter.

Animal control officers stated the pet’s owner came up to the shelter and demanded the dog back .

The man reportedly told officers he used the weight to “condition the animal” and the dog could “roam around while the weight was attached to him.”

Officers disagreed and cited the pet owner for animal cruelty and violating the tether ordinance.

(LaGrange News - April 27, 2016)

Nebraska: German Shepherd tried to hide from man before its death, officer testifies

NEBRASKA -- A German Shepherd hid under a coffee table and inside a closet to try to escape a man who was beating him to death, an animal control officer testified Friday.
 
Misty Binau of the Nebraska Humane Society said there were blood trails throughout the house where investigators think Nathan C. Mayer stabbed and beat his mother’s dog, Shoes, with dumbbell weights. Shoes died of his injuries.

Mayer, 33, is charged with felony animal cruelty. Douglas County Judge Marcela Keim on Friday ordered Mayer to stand trial in district court.

Douglas County sheriff’s deputies were called to an Omaha hospital about 1:30 a.m. Nov. 2 after receiving a report about a man who had been bitten by a dog. Mayer told them a German shepherd had bitten him and he defended himself.

Mayer had a hand injury but did not need stitches, Deputy Michael Jones testified Friday.

Mayer had called 911 to report the dog’s death.

 

The investigation continued at a house near 144th and Fort Streets, where the dog was found in a white plastic bag. The dog’s head was caved in, and he had suffered multiple knife wounds, Binau said.

After Friday’s hearing, Mark Langan of the humane society said Mayer chased the dog through the house to beat him, and said Shoes had tried to hide in several places.

According to Douglas County court records, Mayer is awaiting trial on charges of misdemeanor child abuse. In 2013, he was sentenced to one to three years in prison for aggravated driving while intoxicated, his third offense.

(Omaha.com - Nov 22, 2015)

Earlier:

• Nebraska: Nathan Mayer Jailed on Animal Cruelty Charge After Stabbing Dog to Death 
• Nebraska: Bond set for Nathan Mayer, 33, accused of stabbing dog to death 

Nebraska: Bond set for Nathan Mayer, 33, accused of stabbing dog to death

NEBRASKA -- A judge has set bond at $100,000 for a man accused of stabbing a dog to death after it bit him.

Nebraska Humane Society officials and the Douglas County Sheriff's Office responded to a home near 144th Ct. and N. 144th Ave. on November 2nd.

The investigation indicated 33-year-old Nathan Mayer was bitten by an 8-year-old German Shepherd Mix named "Shoes."

Mayer chased the dog around the house and stabbed it multiple times, investigators said.

During the bond hearing Wednesday, prosecutors said police found a knife and a dumbbell with blood and dog hair, describing the scene as graphic and violent.

  

Mayer's attorney said he was bitten so badly that he needed to be taken to the hospital via ambulance, but prosecutors said the wound didn't even require any stitches.

Mayer is due back in court on November 20, 2015.

(KETV - Nov 4, 2015)

Earlier:

• Nebraska: Nathan Mayer Jailed on Animal Cruelty Charge After Stabbing Dog to Death

Nebraska: Nathan Mayer Jailed on Animal Cruelty Charge After Stabbing Dog to Death

NEBRASKA -- Douglas County Sheriff’s Deputies have arrested a man for allegedly stabbing his dog to death.

Thirty-three-year-old Nathan Mayer was arrested Monday. NHS investigators along with deputies contacted Mayer at his home where they found the dog, an 8-year-old German Shepherd mix named Shoes, in a white plastic bag on the deck.

Investigators say the dog appeared to have multiple stab wounds and blunt force trauma to the head. The investigation determined that Mayer began chasing and stabbing the dog after he was bitten.

Evidence shows the dog was also beaten repeatedly with a barbell. Deputies say there was evidence of the crime in the lower level of the house, and on the main level in numerous rooms.

Monday morning a necropsy was conducted on Shoes by a veterinarian with the Nebraska Humane Society. It was verified the dog died of multiple stab wounds and blunt force trauma.

Those that live in Mayer's neighborhood, call the Westin Hills neighborhood, a nice area.

Some even call it a very dog friendly place, but what happened early, Monday morning, has many neighbors heartbroken.

"It's always sad when a dog is hurt," said Joan Houston.

Houston has lived in the neighborhood for about 14 years, and when she heard the news that Mayer is accused of killing what many in the area have said was his mother's dog, she was shocked.

Not only for her neighborhood, Houston said, that's devastating news no matter where it happens. It's devastating for representatives with the Nebraska Humane Society, too.

Mark Langan, Vice President of Field Operations at NHS, said, "This dog died a slow, agonizing death, so we really do take this personally, when we hear about a situation like this."

NHS is now, stopping at nothing to make sure Mayer is given the maximum penalty.

Langan said, "We'll be working with the prosecutor on the case to make sure the judge finds out exactly what this guy did."

Mayer is still being held at the Douglas County Correctional Center, without bond.

He's being charged with Felony Animal Cruelty. This means, he could be facing up to 5 years in prison or a $10,000 fine. He could also be banned from owning any kind of animal for the next 15 years.

(WOWT - Nov 2, 2015)

Manassas man - Fabian Santiago - charged with animal cruelty after dog photo goes viral

VIRGINIA -- A Manassas man was charged last week after a photo of him dragging his dog, laden with weights, went viral locally.
 
Police and animal control are not discussing the case because it remains under investigation, but said the dog is in good health and is being monitored by the suspect's family.

Police were called to investigate a report of animal abuse on Hood Road, near Clover Hill Road, on the morning of Feb. 28, Manassas police spokeswoman Adrienne Helms said.

The caller told police that they saw a man put weights on his dog and had struck the dog while walking him that morning, Helms said.

A photo of the alleged abuse was posted on local neighborhood and pet sites, and sent to InsideNoVa.com several times.

Police identified the man as Fabian Santiago, 20, of the 9800 block of Bragg Lane and on March 5 arrested him, charging him with animal cruelty.

He was released on his personal recognizance and has a court date on April 14.

The witness who reported the incident to police told InsideNoVa.com said it was clear the dog was in distress and that she saw the man hit the dog "multiple times."

"It was horrible to see and made me feel enough anger that I confronted him," she said.

(Inside NoVA - Mar 5, 2015)

14 puppies found beaten to death; John Philip Peace, 41, arrested

GEORGIA -- A man accused of killing 14 puppies and stuffing them into a pillowcase was charged Thursday with cruelty to animals.
An area resident found the sack full of dead puppies at the entrance of Hillcrest Glenn Subdivision in Buford. He notified Gwinnett County Animal Control, who canvassed the neighborhood for more information.   The agency's investigation found John Philip Peace, 41, to be the puppies' owner and the primary suspect.  Peace claimed the puppies but told investigators he was not responsible for their deaths. His statement did not match the physical evidence, police said.  In addition to the puppies, the pillowcase contained a 10-pound weight. The investigation revealed the puppies' cause of death was blunt force trauma.  "They did die from force trauma. And there is evidence to suggest the weight in the bag was used," said Officer Darren Moloney, spokesman for the Gwinnett County Police Department.  Moloney said all of the puppies appeared to be a Labrador mix and were from the same litter. He did not know what had happened to the puppies' mother.  Peace is being held at the Gwinnett County Detention Center on a $32,200 bond. He has been charged with 14 counts of cruelty to animals, which is a felony in Georgia.

(Gwinnett Daily Post - Jan 7, 2006)