Dog fatally shot with shotgun Golden Gate, FL (US) Incident Date: Sunday, Oct 21, 2001 County: Collier Local Map: available Disposition: Convicted Abuser/Suspect: Andrew Mendo

Case ID: 1074 Classification: Shooting Animal: dog (non pit-bull) View more cases in FL (US) Animal was offleash or loose Abuse was retaliation against animal's bad behavior Drugs or alcohol involved Login to Watch this Case

Andrew Mendo, age 62, was sentenced to two years in jail and three years on probation after pleading no contest on March 20 to fatally shooting his son's dog with a shotgun. He was convicted of one charge of animal cruelty, a felony punishable by up to five years in state prison.

He has already spent more than a year in jail since his arrest awaiting a trial or a plea and began serving the second half of his two-year sentence immediately after his plea was entered in Collier Circuit Court.

Assistant State Attorney Christine Greider, who handled the case, said Mendo made a plea to the court, meaning he did so without the benefit of any plea bargain agreement with the prosecutor about what the sentence would be.

Mendo also received a suspended sentence of four years in state prison, which he will not serve if he completes three years of probation. He was arrested after deputies spent several months investigating the Oct. 27, 2001, shooting at his home at 341 10th St. N.E.

According to the arrest report, witnesses told deputies that Cleo, a small female dog, had run through a screen on the home's rear lanai. As a result, the dog's owners tethered him to a clothesline. Cleo belonged to Mendo's son, Brian, said Mendo's attorney, Assistant Public Defender Shannon Brown.

Mendo had been drinking beer later that day. At some point, he walked behind his home with a shotgun and shot Cleo, according to a sheriff's report. Deputies say Mendo left the dog tied to the clothesline, went back inside the house, sat down and drank another beer before untying the dead dog and then taking the animal into the woods.

Brown said Mendo told police he thought the dog was in pain from the injury it suffered breaking through the screen.

Neighborhood Map

For more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.

Back to Top

Add this case to:

Del.icio.us

|

Digg

|

Furl

|

References

Naples Daily News

« FL State Animal Cruelty Map

Not sure what these icons mean? Click here.

Note: Classifications and other fields should not be used to determine what specific charges the suspect is facing or was convicted of - they are for research and statistical purposes only. The case report and subsequent updates outline the specific charges. Charges referenced in the original case report may be modified throughout the course of the investigation or trial, so case updates, when available, should always be considered the most accurate reflection of charges.

For more information regarding classifications and usage of this database, please visit the database notes and disclaimer.