Police: Man dragged dogs with car, rope tied around their necks

“Sorry, don’t buy it, owner “William Wilkinson” said he put a rope around necks of dogs; but didn’t realise it would strangle them?? WTF…the word thick, stupid & irresponsible, come to hand! The guy shouldn’t be allowed to own such sentient beings, if he doesn’t realise rope, when pulled tight, around a neck; strangles!!!”

Updated: 3:52 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2014 | Posted: 1:23 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2014

WAYNE TOWNSHIP, Pa. —

A 59-year-old man is accused of tying rope around the necks of two dogs and dragging them by the hitch of his car last month in Wayne Township.

According to police, officers were called to the area of Dewey Avenue on July 27 for the report of a man dragging dogs with a rope using his vehicle.

A responding officer reported that he found the two dogs badly injured with multiple gashes. The ropes were still around both dogs’ necks.

According to an affidavit of probable cause, the dogs’ owner, William Wilkinson, told police the dogs got out of his yard while he was at the doctors.

The affidavit said Wilkinson said he couldn’t find anyone to help him when he located the dogs, so he tied the rope around the dogs and traveled about 2 mph with them tied to the hitch.

At one point, according to affidavit, Wilkinson said he stopped to give one of the dogs mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Police talked with a witness who said he saw the dogs being dragged so he raced in to help. The witness told police he noticed one of the dogs was not breathing so he got a knife from his truck to cut the rope.

According to the affidavit, the witness told police he couldn’t get his fingers under the rope because it was so tight. The witness said Wilkinson eventually resuscitated the dog.

The witness then called police, who came to the scene. The affidavit said Wilkinson told officers dragging the dogs was an accident, and he didn’t know the rope would strangle them.

The dogs were taken to a veterinarian and are currently in an unspecified safe location.

Copy of Video link File:-http://www.wpxi.com/videos/news/police-say-man-tied-rope-around-dogs-neck-dragged/vCpx3f/

Channel 11’s Jennifer Tomazic is working on uncovering more information about this story. Look for her full report later tonight on Channel 11 News at 5.

News Link:-http://www.wpxi.com/news/news/police-man-dragged-dogs-car-rope-tied-around-their/ng9m2/

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UPDATE: No jail time for NYPD officer & wife for allowing dog to starve to death

“WTF…seriously, what’s the point in taking cases like this to court, where a couple let their dog starve to death; but the judge lets them off with a suspended sentence?? Oh, sorry, they were banned from owning a pet for 5 years…well whoopy fxxxxxg do!! Where is the deterrent value here, none at all. Is there any wonder so many animals are harmed when the justice system doesn’t do anything to try & stop it, I’m sick of seeing these pathetic sentences, sorry slaps on the wrist? It makes me so fxxxxxg mad!!!”

Danny Neira, an NYPD officer, and his wife, Rose Neira, of Farmingdale, N.Y., learned on Tuesday that they will not be heading to jail for allowing their dog to starve to death.

According to Tuesday’s Newsday publication, District Court Judge Sondra Pardes instead ruled that the couple will have three years of probation for their animal cruelty conviction.

Animal cruelty conviction – Rose Neira Credit: Pet-Abuse.com

The couple faced charges after their two-year-old Great Dane, “Zack,” was discovered weighing a dismal 87 pounds back in Nov. 2010. A healthy, normal weight for this breed of dog ranges from 120 to 150 pounds.

Following the discovery of the emaciated dog, Zack received intensive veterinary care, but died just weeks later. According to the veterinary clinic which treated him, Zack died from heart issues stemming from starvation.

The couple argued that their dog suffered from a bowel disease which caused his poor body weight. They also told the court that their dog was receiving veterinary care.

Regardless of the claim of a health issue, the jury found that the couple had not provided adequate care for their dog.

The Neiras are prohibited from owning a pet for the next five years.

News Link:-http://www.examiner.com/article/no-jail-time-for-nypd-officer-and-wife-for-allowing-dog-to-starve-to-death?CID=obinsite

Related:– https://preciousjules1985.wordpress.com/2012/10/26/farmingdale-couple-convicted-of-animal-abuse/

Published on 11 Oct 2012

Danny and Rose Neira were convicted of neglecting their their Great Dane, Zach. This video was taken by an investigator from District Attorney Kathleen Rice‘s Animal Crimes Unit. Though vets tried to save Zach, his organs had deteriorated too much to survive. His visible ribs and vertebrae, unclipped nails, and dirty ears are additional evidence of neglect. DA Rice created the animal crimes unit to protect animals like Zack, but also because those who are cruel to animals often harm people too. To report animal abuse in Nassau County, call the anonymous Animal Crimes Hotline at  (516) 680-8624

Fate of killer dog discussed with Nevada judge

“Just got one thing to say, what the hell was a toddler doing on the floor, with a 120 pound mastiff-Rhodesian ridgebackdog???”

LAS VEGAS— The fate of a 120-pound dog that killed a toddler at home in Henderson was being discussed Friday at a meeting involving a Nevada judge, city attorneys and lawyers for a New York-based animal rescue group that wants to send the animal to a sanctuary outside Denver.

Clark County District Court Judge Joanna Kishner was being asked to reconsider a May 11 ruling giving Henderson city officials the go-ahead to euthanize the animal as vicious. Kishner said at the time the Lexus Project didn’t have legal standing to take possession of the 6-year-old mastiff-Rhodesian ridgeback mix named Onion.

No immediate decision was expected Friday on the request, court spokeswoman Mary Ann Price said.

The situation has drawn intense interest and an appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court, which issued an order this week halting any action against the dog pending Kishner’s ruling. The animal is healthy and being kept at an animal control shelter, Henderson police spokesman Keith Paul said.

Henderson officials took ownership of the dog from the child’s grandmother on April 27, minutes after the fatal mauling of the 1-year-old boy. Family members later said the dog reacted suddenly when the toddler grabbed its fur to pull himself to a standing position.

The family later said in a statement that ownership of the dog had been turned over to Henderson animal control officers, and family members would no longer comment on its future.

Rescue group head Robin Mittasch submitted documents to the court saying the grandmother didn’t know what she was signing when she gave up ownership to the city, and that she wanted the animal to go to the Lexus Project.

Lawyer Kathy McCarthy, representing the Lexus Project, said the grandmother’s move gave the rescue group a legal basis to take the dog.

Kishner didn’t publicly release a time for Friday’s closed-door meeting. Lawyers for the Lexus Project of Oceanside, N.Y., did not respond Thursday and Friday to messages.

News Link:-http://online.wsj.com/article/AP19ba68bc01294a41a160ab531308cda4.html

Worse case of animal cruelty judge had seen

Dundalk man (26) convicted of multiple charges of animal cruelty

A DUNDALK man has been told that he can never again look after an animal after he was convicted of several charges of animal cruelty which were described by the presiding judge as the worst he had seen in 13 years as a District Court judge.

Marc Finnegan (27), Readypenny, Dundalk was convicted of five counts of cruelly mistreating an animal to the extent that the animal had to be euthanized. 

He was also convicted of another charge of letting a carcass remain unburied and accessible to a dog contrary to the Control of Dogs Act.

When shown picture of the animals involved in the case, Judge Sean MacBride said “My God” and told the court that he had never seen such cruelty in all his years as a District Court Judge.

The court heard how over a number of weeks a vet from the Department of Agricultire, Ms Eileen O’Neill visited the farm of Finnegan at Drumaleave, Inniskeen.

Giving testimony Mrs O’Neill said that she had visited him nines times in the space of 8 weeks, informing him on the eighth occasion that legal preceeding would be brought against the man.

Mrs O’Neill said on her final visit to the farm she witnessed neglect of a most apalling nature.

She told the court how on 5 May 2010, she came to the farm near Inniskeen. To a shed to her left she saw a door open where she found three bovine carcasses which she said would have been left there for a period of approximately a week. The carcasses were left to rot in approximately a foot of slurry.

In another shed she found 60 live animals and one dead animal which had been trampled into the slurry by the other cattle.

She also found another animal which was still alive which was being trampled into the slurry by the other animals. This animal, along with another two others, later had to euthanized.

Mrs O’Neill said that a body conditioning score was carried out on the remaining 60 animals. This test sees the animals given a score from 1 to 5 depending on their condition. The average rating of the animals were just 1.3.

After the discovery of the conditions, family members took over the running of the farm and the husbandry of the cattle.

Mrs O’Neill told the court that she believed the case to be one of “wilful neglect”, and told the court the every opportunity had been given to Finnegan to stop what he was doing and to tend to the animals properly.

Photographs were given to Judge Sean MacBride who was clearly shocked by what he saw, saying “My God” when he saw them. “These are the worst I’ve ever seen. The dreadful pains these animals must have been in, they would surely be mentally and physically scarred.”

Finnegan’s defence solicitor, Conan Fegan BL said that his client had a history of “severe psychiatric illness”, and that he was suffering with depression and suicidal thoughts.

Finnegan took to the stand, where Judge MacBride asked him what medication he was on, to which he replied that he did not know but that he took two pills a day.

Finnegan had once been a student of geography at NUI Maynooth and had a steady girlfriend. That relationship had ended and he had gone downhill since then.

The court heard that he had taken to drinking cider and had become completely isolated and was a self professed loner.

His defence told the court that the cruelty to the animals was a result of simple neglect and that his client wasn’t even able to look after himself.

At one point there was confusion as to if under Irish Law a man could be stopped from looking after animals for a lifetime, though Judge MacBride said that he would give an appropriate sentence to suit the crime.

Judge MacBride went back to his chamber to deliberate on the psychiatric report on Finnegan. When he returned to the court he said that he thought that the report said that Finnegan was genuinely unwell.

When he returned he said that Finnegan has suffered a horririfc incident as a child but that was no excuse for the cruelty inflicted on the cattle.

It also emeraged that Finnegan had a previous conviction for animal cruelty dating back to just 6 months before in a court in Mullingar.

He had also changed his name by deed poll to Michael Kearney.

Judge MacBride gave Finnegan a six months suspended sentence on the condition he never be involved in animal husbandry or farming again, that he receive all therapeutic medicines and pyscho therapy, psychological counselling and behavioural therapy. He also set the conditions that he abstain from alcohol, engage with alcohol counselling and be involved in no crime whatsoever. He fined Finnegan a total of €3,000 and gave him 6 months to pay with one month in default.

Judge Sean MacBride told the Finengan that is was not too late to turn his life around and that he should face his demons or he would never have peace.

News Link:-Dundalkdemocrat.news