All Charges Dropped in Case of Animal Control Officer Shooting Mother Cat and Two Kittens (He claimed self defense!)

An animal control officer who shot and killed three cats will soon be back on the job.

All charges against Fred Grasso have been dropped.

Grasso faced two unclassified misdemeanor charges for allegedly violating the state’s Agriculture and Markets Law. The first count charged him with cruelty to animals and the other alleged he euthanized a dog or cat by gunshot.  How was this last one dropped?!  It is undeniable that he euthanized killed the cat and kittens by gunshot.

The judge pointed out that for Grasso to be convicted of the cruelty charge, he would have to have acted “unjustifiably” in the shooting of the cats.

Town Justice Richard Scott ruled that Fred Grasso didn't actually commit a crime when he shot and killed three cats last June.

Grasso said the reason he shot the animals was because they were rabid (don't you have to kill the animal to test brain tissue to make a diagnosis of Rabies?!) and a danger. The judge agreed and cleared him of any wrongdoing.

The judge said because the officer thought the animals were wild and dangerous, he broke no law by shooting them.

Animal advocates expressed their disappointment. "I know of no case ever where kittens have killed or harmed a human being to the point where deadly force needs to be used," said Barbara Carr of the SPCA.

Grasso's attorney Arcangelo Petricca said, "He does not destroy animals unfairly or unjustly. He felt that he was in danger and that the tenants and residents of that building were in danger, and he had to act quickly and swiftly in order to save them." He had to save the residents from a mother cat and two kittens?!  Are you kidding me?  This is ridiculous!

Petricca called his client “an animal lover himself” who is also a cat owner and who “doesn’t destroy animals unfairly or unjustly.”  An animal lover who has no problem shooting a cat and her kittens.  He saw them hiss and went to get his rifle.  He didn't close the door (which would have enclosed them in the basement, thus, protecting the residents from these big bad kitties!) and wait for someone to help him, he didn't close the door and stop to think...

“[Grasso] felt strongly from the beginning he acted justifiably,” Petricca said. “All I know is he’s tremendously relieved.”

New York State does not have any requirements in place for someone who wants to be an animal control officer.

Assemblyman Sam Hoyt tells News 4 legislation is currently being drafted to change that.

Here is the Judge's Information:  (I urge you to contact him!  Tell him the TNR was the best option for these kitties-not a gun shot to the head!  Click here and here for information to include in your letter.  Use this opportunity to show your disappointment and EDUCATE this judge.  Being rude or impolite truly hurts our cause!)

Richard B. Scott (D)
West Seneca Town Hall
1250 Union Road
West Seneca, New York 14224
phone - 1-716-558-3246

Click here for video.

Sources:

http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/animal_control_officer_case_dismissed_090220 

http://www.wgrz.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=64358&provider=gnews

http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/585872.html

http://directories.erie.gov/officialdir/results.asp?action=1&search=Town+of+West+Seneca

Man beat 5 Pomeranian puppies to death with hammer and is ACQUITTED!

Keith Barton, 73,  killed five Pomeranian puppies with a hammer because he did not want the SPCA officers to seize them.  The SPCA went to his house to seize his thirteen dogs.  He would rather these five be dead than held at the city shelter while he straightened things out?  I mean, the city shelter might have killed them too but at least it would have been more humane than getting their head smashed in with a hammer!

Keith Barton had applied for a licence for Pet Me Kennel, said animal protection officer David Lynch, and a follow-up inspection was being conducted after he had been told to clean up the property.  The SPCA officials and the animal control officer found that his property still did not meet kennel standards and proceeded to seize the dogs.

Barton was playing with the dogs in the yard as the 11 Pomeranians began to be seized, Lynch said. The protection officer said he noticed Barton takings dogs into a shed and thought he was looking for privacy to say goodbye to the animals.

"When he came out of the shed, he put on a coat. He sat on a chair on his back step, and he never said a word ," Lynch said. "I went into the shed to take the animals, and that's when I discovered that … they were dead."

Five of the dogs inside the shed were dead and one was seriously injured, Lynch said.

Judge Patricia Cumming must be mentally impaired because she said there was evidence that the the dog were "rendered unconscious" when they were hit and did not suffer when he was bashing their heads in with a hammer.  What about the first strike that (supposedly) caused them to lose consciousness?

She did feel that one dog, Jake, who survived, did feel pain.  She found him guilty of injuring the dog.  

Barton told the court, in November, he thought he had the right to kill his dogs and he didn't want the SPCA to take his dogs. He testified that he couldn't let the seizure happen because he "loved the dogs so desperately."

When Barton also testified he described the day he killed his dogs as "the worst day of my life, when I had to do that to my babies."

Barton said he would have killed all of the dogs if he had more time.

The Minto man said he thought he had a right to put his dogs down but a provincial veterinary pathologist said Barton's tactics were not an acceptable method of euthanasia for dogs.

The vet said it would have taken three to five minutes for the dogs to die.

Not only did he kill these puppies, he also neglected them while they were alive.  He was charged with three counts of failing to give proper care to his thirteen Pomeranians.  Why only three counts if there were thirteen Pomeranians?  The Judge only fined him the minimum of about $120 on each case.

The judge gave him a conditional discharge, with the condition that he cannot own a dog or pet for the next 12 months.  

This is an extremely violent act and at the end of this, we have five dead puppies, a $360 fine for not providing water to three of the thirteen dogs, the condition that he cannot own any animals for twelve months, and he was found guilty of injuring an animal (the one who survived).  What about the ones he KILLED?  Do they not deserve justice!?


Sources:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2008/11/28/nb-defence-dogs.html

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2008/03/07/dogs-killed.html

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2009/02/03/nb-dogs-barton.html?ref=rss 

Utility employee kicks 2 pound teacup chihuahua, breaks her neck and kills her!

What began as a day of packing and moving for Brianne Enos ended with the death of the family’s two-pound Teacup Chihuahua, Gwen, after a Southwest Gas Corp. employee kicked it and broke its neck, according to the family.

The family said the employee was at the home on Friday for a service call when he kicked the 9-year-old dog, breaking her neck and killing her after the dog ran out of the home and began to bark.

“He did this right in from of my wife while she’s holding my 2-month-old baby boy,” Kevin Enos said.

Brianne Enos called San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Hesperia station and filed a report on Friday, sheriff’s officials said.

The couple says their dog did run out and bark at the employee, whose name has not been released by Southwest Gas, but stated that the man did not give Brianne Enos enough time to put down her child and chase after the dog before he kicked it.

Southwest Gas sent its condolances along with their explanation.

“In the presence of Mrs. Enos and while outside of their residence, the service technician was charged twice by the homeowner’s aggressive dog which resulted in an unfortunate incident. Southwest Gas offers its condolences to the Enos family and regrets the unfortunate accident,” the statement continued.

Source:

http://www.vvdailypress.com/news/kicks_10957___article.html/alleges_kills.html 

People living in house with 13 dead cats and 2 dogs

Police continue to investigate cases of animal cruelty at an Arvada home, a suburb of Denver. The carcasses of 13 cats and two dogs were removed from a house at 54th & Cody on Tuesday.

Two dogs were rescued and are now awaiting adoption at the Table Mountain Animal Center .

Police say they've been to the home repeatedly since last summer on complaints of loose animals and trash in the yard.

"There were some calls that we came out and addressed those issues with the homeowners regarding dogs in the yard and such but there was nothing ever to lead us to believe what was happening inside the house and the number of dead animals that were inside the house," said Susan Medina, Arvada Police spokesperson.

One woman who noticed an underfed dog in the front yard last August wonders why more wasn't done.

"Because if they would have done something six months ago, they probably wouldn't have found 15 dead animals," said Carol, who didn't want her last name used. "Maybe four or five, but for 15 dead animals in six months, that's a little hard to believe."

Sources:

www.tablemountainanimals.org

www.denverpost.com

www.kdvr.com 

Animal shelter operators spent donations on drugs while cats languished and died

More than 70 malnourished cats and several cat carcasses were discovered by police Jan. 24 after the shelter's owner and operator, Virginia Kresge Justiniano, 49, and her boyfriend, Andrew Oxenrider, 38, of Tower City, were arrested on drug possession charges after a traffic stop in Pine Grove, Pennsylvania.

Police followed the drugs arrests by going to the shelter near Pine Grove. Investigators found cats and other animals that were dead, dying or starving. They found pallets filled with donated cat food, and they accuse Oxenrider of selling that cat food.

Oxenrider will also face attempted bribery charges after allegedly offering a Pine Grove borough police officer $500 to let him out of the traffic stop, while Justiniano will face animal cruelty charges after abandoning the felines for months, according to the Schuylkill County District Attorney's office.

Police said the home was littered with hypodermic needles and syringes while cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana and other drugs were found in both the house and a nearby hotel room Justiniano and Oxenrider were renting.

Also, Justiniano and Oxenrider could face federal fraud charges for using shelter donations to buy drugs, according to Hall.

On her way into court, Justiniano spoke with Newswatch 16. "I believe the media has been misleading and I have no other comment," she said. She then added, "I'll let my past actions speak for themselves."

While unconfirmed, Hall said stories have been circulating that out-of-state donors may have given huge sums -- in one case, $25,000 -- to Cats With No Name over the past several years.

Hall said the shelter had once been a reputable, legitimate animal-care facility. However, Justiniano and Oxenrider allegedly began using donation money to buy drugs rather than food or medical supplies for the felines, according to police.

Police also said allege couple sold crates of cat food to raise drug money.

SPCA workers said it appeared several cats had resorted to eating a decaying deer carcass after not being properly fed for weeks. Thirteen cats have been euthanized and at least five cats died from starvation or extreme temperatures, SPCA workers said.

A group from the SPCA helped police build the cruelty case against Justiniano and Oxenrider.

"We cannot find any excuse for this to happen," said Beth Hall of Deer Lake. "In my opinion, it was like a kitty concentration camp - frozen cats, dead cats, starving cats."

"It blows my mind!" echoed Kristen Overkott of Atlas. "She was fully aware of what was going on and she had all the proper materials - medications, food, everything - to keep these cats healthy, and just seemed to refuse to do so."

Justiniano and Oxenrider remain in Schuylkill County Prison in lieu of $25,000 bail.  A hearing on the cruelty cases will be held next month in Schuylkill County. Justiniano and Oxenrider face fines and jail time if convicted.

Sources:
http://individual.com/story.php?story=95737375

http://www.wnep.com/wnep-schyl-cited-for-animal-abuse,0,2078910.story

Karma had her second surgery on Wednesday and is doing great!

Karma had another Femoral Head Ostectomy (FHO) done on Wednesday.  She was up and about the morning after her surgery and was able to come home just two days later!  For those of you who do not know about Karma, she was a stray who was hit by a car.  She needed two FHOs done on her back hips due to the impact of the car.  The procedures were done about a month apart.  Her first surgery was on January 20th, her second on Feb 18th.  The picture of her laying on the blanket is from today, the other two are from yesterday.

She is soooo happy to be back home!  She loves sitting on our laps and purrs any time we get near her!  She definitely feels at home with us.