1/26/07---A horrible trial...a horrible life

There are a lot of nights when I come home and I'm having dinner with Kim & the kids and Kellie will ask me if we had any interesting cases that day.  Usually I'll tell them about some particularly interesting thing that happened that day, and I guess they sort of enjoy hearing about it.  The other night....I decided not to talk about work.

We took a trial from another judge.  The charge was Cruelty to Animals.  The accused was charged with cruelty by "abandonment of an animal".

 I can remember awhile back, when Kim was forced to euthanize her cat Trigger, who was 24 years old and suffering from renal failure, the veternarian telling Kim that one of the reasons she should consider letting the cat go was to "think about his quality of life".
His kidney's were failing and the doctor told us, that although he could be treated....that we should consider how Trigger felt--that he was probably miserable and not really enjoying the whole process of living that much...and that things didn't look like they were going to be improving.

Her name was Isis, and truth be told....she probably didn't have much of a life. 

One day a worker who had come to Florida after the hurricane was working on fixing the powerlines and heard what he thought to be a "sort of moaning".  He looked down into the yard next to where he was working and saw a dog laying on its side, obviously in some distress.  He called out to the dog to see if it would respond, but the dog didn't move.  He tried to call the dog  a few more times, and after not getting a response, he decided to call the city's animal control unit (and God bless him for doing that).  The animal control officer came to the location, tried to reach someone inside by knocking on the door and when that failed, went into the backyard to check on the animal. 
She said the first thing that struck her was the incredible stench that was coming from the yard, and in particular the cage where a dog layed on its side.  Before she began to attend to the dog, she called the city's police department and asked for an officer to be sent to the location for a possible animal abuse case.  She then looked after the dog, and the first thing she noticed was the fluid that was coming out of the dog's mouth and nose.  The animal was laying in its own urine and feces and had sores on its side from laying onto of a cage withoutany form of cushion or padding provided for it.  The animal was a bull terrier--best known as the breed that gave us "Spuds MacKenzie" back in the 80's.  She tried everything she could to get the animal to respond and nothing worked.  She knew from her training that the dog was in severe trouble.
About this time, the city police officer that had been called arrived on the scene, and again tried to knock on the door--with his flashlight--and still no one answered.
He met with the animal control officer in the back yard, and was advised that the dog needed to be taken to the hospital and right away.  It was about at this time that the backdoor to the house opened up and a man walked out.  The police officer walked over to him and asked him if he was the owner of the dog.  The man looked over at the animal control officer administering to the dog and didn't answer.  The officer asked him again--and again got no answer.  Finally, for the third time the man was asked if the dog was his--he told the officer that he was responsible for the animal.

The police officer would say later that what struck him first was the incredible smell.
When asked to describe it, he would testify that he had been called before to murder scenes...to scenes where a person had been found dead, sometimes for a long time.
The smell from the backyard that day was worse---worse than even coming upon a dead body.  He also said that he couldn't help but notice the incredible amount of fluid that the dog was expelling from its nose and mouth....and almost continual flow of vomit.
The dog appeared to be anywhere from 20 to 30 lbs under what its normal weight should be....its nipples were distended and its vulva was swollen....signs that the animal control officer would say were common with an animal that may have just given birth to a litter.

The police officer continued to talk to the man who had come out of the house.  The officer asked why the animal was in such condition.  He was told...by the man....that:

"The dog must have bitten a toad."

The man showed the officer a selection of medicinal items, including a solution and cream for dogs with ear mites...and a fluid that is given to females that have just had a litter of pups, called "Restore", which is supposed to provide nutrients to the dog.
The dog informed the officer that the dog, named Isis, was in the backyard becauseit had problems getting along with the other dogs in the household.

Meanwhile, the animal control officer had arrived at the local animal hospital and the dog was examined by a veternarian.  The dog was continuing to lose fluids at an alarming rate--so much so that the officer couldn't keep the dog up in the front of her vehicle on the ride to the hospital.  The doctor did all she could, before deciding to make a difficult decison.

Isis, after a horrible life, was put down.  She was said to be four years old.  She had just delivered a litter of pups, and may have been used as a vehicle for breeding by her "owner" or "caretaker".   She most likely spent all of her days in night in a cage, with a wire or steel floor, with a roof made out of tin--which may have kept out the rain, but certainly not the heat of a south Florida summer.  She had sores about her body, do not only from her "home", but from laying in her urine, feces and vomit.  She probably did not have much of a "quality of life".  She probably found far more peace in death than she ever found in her short, horrible life.  The doctor probably grieved that she was unable to do more for the dog, not realizing the incredible service she was doing for the animal by putting it out of its misery.

The case went to trial last week in my courtroom.  I have three dogs, and I have no use for anyone who would ever willingly hurt any animal, but especially a dog.  I watched the defendant listen to the horrible, emotional testimony from the witnesses with no expression on his face....no remorse, no disbelief....nothing.  He sat there stonefaced as the evidence was introduced---photos of Isis at the animal hospital, lifeless and laying on a trashbag--as if she was so much garbage.  Her wounds were apparent, as was the rest of the damage that had been inflicted upon her.  His attorney, during cross examination, would introduce that his client had been caring for the dog--and the proof was that the medicine was there for her ear mites, and the bottle of Restore was there to be administered to the dog.  Testimony was introduced that the defendant had called a friend of his who worked at a seperate animal hospital and inquired what he should do for the animal--but the friend had been told, incorrectly, that the animal had "probably gotten ahold of a toad".  He was advised to flush out the dog's mouth--thefriend obviously, not realizing the depth of trouble the animal was in as he was only offering advice over the phone.  When he was called back, he correctly advised the defendant to take the animal directly to a hospital---and still, Isis was left there, laying in her cage.

The jury returned a verdict in less than half an hour.

Guilty as charged.

The judge's sentence was swift and severe.  364 days in jail, and a $5,000 fine plus court costs.  She called the testimony amongst the worst she had ever heard and ordered the defendant remanded to custody.  When she pronounced her sentence, a friend of the defendant's in the courtroom burst into tears....saddened that he would be held in custody to serve his sentence.

I couldn't help but wonder why there had been no tears for a young dog, a young mother with a litter of pups that probably had never seen after giving birth other than when she was needed to nurse......there had been no tears shed at the sight that confronted an electrical worker from out of state that day, that an animal control officer saw and smelled that day, that a veteran police officer called worse than a murder scene.

No one cried for a young dog named Isis during her short life.  I saw no use to offer any for her "owner", as he deserved none from me.....or anyone else for that matter.


Later,
Jeff