Man beats his 2 year old pit bull, attacks her with darts and wires her mouth shut

A Central Islip man was charged with animal cruelty after he repeatedly tortured his 2-year-old pit bull, Emma, throwing metal game darts at her, beating her with metal pipes and tying her mouth shut with speaker wire, Suffolk police said.

John Bayliss, 39, of 6 Bayonne Ave., also was charged with third-degree menacing in an unrelated domestic dispute.

According to police and state records, Bayliss has a criminal history that includes convictions for second-degree assault - he served 4 years in prison after assaulting his 18-month-old son in 1997 - weapons possession and criminal trespass.

The boy lives with his mother, police said.  



Officers who investigated a domestic disturbance call Tuesday afternoon said the house Bayliss shares with his girlfriend had been converted into apartments, with unsafe wiring and partitions, Suffolk County police Lt. James Gruenfelder said.

That is also when police learned of the allegations that Bayliss regularly beat one of his two pit bulls, Gruenfelder said.

Police took several items they said Bayliss used to torment Emma over the past year: speaker wire, metal game darts, a foot-long metal flashlight, and two metal pipes about an inch in diameter - one 2 feet long, the other 3 feet long.

"It was a very, very friendly dog, too, believe it or not," Gruenfelder said. "In spite of all of that."

Emma, who is black with a white chest, had scars on several parts of her body. Bayliss' other dog, Lexie, also 2 years old, was not beaten, police said.

Bayliss adopted Emma as a puppy two years ago, Gruenfelder said. Islip Town animal control officers took the dogs for veterinary care. Emma still is receiving treatment, while Lexie is at the Islip animal shelter, Gruenfelder said.

The Suffolk County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals aided in the animal abuse investigation, and the Islip Town fire marshal is investigating the unsafe living conditions, police said.

Bayliss' bail was set at $5,000 and bond at $15,000 at his arraignment Wednesday in First District Court in Central Islip.

He remained at the Suffolk County Jail in Riverhead last night, the Suffolk sheriff's office said.

For more on this case, please visit pet-abuse.com. 

*Update* Dog beaten with Hammer and Buried Alive

A Forest Grove man,  Hyrum F. Long, 75, and his daughter, Susan Diane Johnson beat Johnson's dog, Molly in the head with a hammer and buried her up to her neck in dirt.  They claim she was sick and they thought it was the right thing to do.  A necropsy revealed (aside from the obvious injuries) prolonged neglect and that she had not eaten in several days.  

On Dec. 8, Johnson pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree animal neglect before Washington County Circuit Judge Rick Knapp.

Knapp sentenced Johnson to 90 days in jail, followed by two years' formal probation. She was also ordered to perform 100 hours of community service and cannot own any animals for five years.

Long is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 3.

Click here for the whole story

Click here to watch news footage from November.  

Kindergarten Teacher Arrested-Starved Chained Dog Had Seizures in Backyard Resulting in Death

A dog house, a bowl and a chain are all that are left of Fluff Ball.

The lab mix belonged to a Metro school teacher and her husband. They are facing felony charges alleging they starved their dog to death. Fluff Ball was about 8 years old and weighed 20 pounds.

"It should have weighed 45 to possibly even 60 pounds," said Animal Control's Judy Ladebauche. "This little dog weighed 20 pounds."

Ladebauche said Fluff Ball died of emaciation and starvation.

Sunday, a neighbor called police when the dog, chained to a tree, seemed to be having problems.

"They found the dog on a chain having severe seizures," Ladebauche said.

No one could tell Animal Control officers exactly how long it had been since Fluff Ball's last meal. Officers said another dog in the home seemed healthy and well-fed.

The dog's owners, Elizabeth and David Sadler, were arrested Monday and charged with aggravated animal cruelty. No one answered the door Thursday at the couple's Antioch home.

"(They) seemed upset and angry and felt that it was just a dog, but, unfortunately, we don't see it that way," Ladebauche said.

Elizabeth Sadler is a teacher at Hattie Cotton Elementary School, where she was arrested. She was an interim teacher until September, when she was hired full-time as a kindergarten teacher. She is now on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

Sadler and her husband were being held in Metro jail on $10,000 bond each. Both have been released.

A hearing is scheduled for Jan. 7.



Michael Mondelli is the Judge for both of them. The hearing is in the Birch Bldg, Court Room 4C.

The prosecutor is Almalina Hernandez. 

David L. Sadler's Case Number is GS412289
Elizabeth Joy Sadler's Case number is GS412290

Elizabeth Sadler's Case
http://ccc.nashville.gov/portal/page/portal/ccc/caseSearch/caseSearchPublic/caseSearchPublicResults/?a1=901467|2293233|CJIS 

David L. Sadler's Case

http://ccc.nashville.gov/portal/page/portal/ccc/caseSearch/caseSearchPublic/caseSearchPublicResults/?a1=901347|2292975|CJIS 

They also have the affidavit available as a pdf.  

Here is the text of the affidavit:

Arrived on the scene at 844 Rocky Mountain Pkwy on 11/30/08 at 12:18pm on 

a dog in distress complaint. Upon arrival , I observed a tan, female, severely emaciated dog chained up with what appeared to be 4 feet of chain. The dog was severely seizuring and was unresponsive. Dog was immediately confiscated and taken to Nashville Pet E.R.. The dog had current rabies tag that was registered to the defendant.  Contact was made to 

the defendant and defendant admitted ownership. The attending E.R. veterinarians diagnosed animal as severely neglected, starvation and the result of starvation was the seizuring and the dogs weight of 20 lbs. No food or water was present on scene of confiscation. 

The offense of Animal Cruelty is an Aggravated E FELONY.

News Video of the case 

Click here to follow the case 

Huge dogfighting ring busted in Houston!

In three counties near Houston, Texas some people are now facing felonies due to their involvement in a dog fighting bust. Eight suspects have been arrested and 43 others have been indicted. As many as 100 people attended the fights, some betting as much as $1000.

Acting on an outside tip from a man in another state, undercover investigators attended these fights over a 17 month period. Investigators have seized 187 dogs who await their fate with death. Pit Bulls are killed all the time and especially fighting pit bulls. These dogs are victims. They are taught right and wrong from unethical people. They can be trained to be good dogs again. Read an update on the Vick dogs.

In Texas, anyone who owns or trains a dog with the intent that the dog be used in dog fighting; or attends as a spectator an exhibition of dog fighting-has committed a felony.

Drugs, weapons and stolen property were also found.

Sources: www.chron.com, www.hcnonline.com, www.animallaw.info

Rottweiler Found Chained to Tree, Arizona Man Arrested, Dog Euthanized Due to Very Poor Physical Condition

A 30-year-old Buckeye resident was arrested Tuesday after allegedly neglecting his dog.

The Maricopa County Sherriff's Office received a tip on the sheriff's animal abuse hotline, which led deputies to Kane, a black and tan Rottweiler chained to a tree.

According to authorities, the bare tree offered no shelter due to lack of foliage. Kane was covered in mud, and in extreme, poor physical condition. Investigators found his ribs, spine, and hips were predominant, likely due to a lack of nutrition and care.

Kane was taken immediately to a veterinarian for a physical examination and because of his poor physical condition, was euthanized.

Wilson was booked into the 4th Avenue Jail on two counts of animal neglect, including failure to provide medical attention and failure to provide shelter.