 Attempted leg amputation with pruning shears
San Antonio, TX (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Feb 13, 2007
County: Bexar
Disposition: Alleged
Charges: Felony CTA
Alleged: Fernando Ramiro
Case Updates: 2 update(s) available |
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A man is now under investigation for animal cruelty after he allegedly tried to cut off a dog's leg with pruning shears.
Witnesses said the animal was tortured for several hours on the front porch of man's home on the West Side .
The man told Animal Care Services he was just trying to help the dog with a kind of 'home amputation' after the dog had been hit by a car.
Neighbor Ronald Rodriguez told News 4 he was standing in the street watching Fernando Ramiro torture the dog on his front porch.
"I mean that dog was just yelling and screaming. It's crazy," said Rodriguez. He added, "Those shears were that long. That, you know, that dog was not that bad off."
After the pruning shears failed to work, Rodriguez said Ramiro then held down the dog by pushing his foot down on the dog's head and tried to use a dull pocket knife to cut off the dog's leg. Rodriguez told News 4 that's when he called the police.
"His girlfriend comes over and says 'no, no, no, no. He's done this before. He's done this before, and he knows what he's doing'," Rodriguez said.
The little dog belonged to Ramiro's sister, Berta. She broke into tears while talking to animal cruelty investigators, and dodged News 4's cameras when they tried to talk to her. Both she and her boyfriend claim they tried to get the dog medical attention later that night, but it died on the way. The pair also insist Ramiro did nothing wrong.
The dog's blood was still visible on the front porch two days later when News 4 visited the home on Thursday. Although police were called at the time the incident occurred, no one reported it to Animal Care Services until News 4 did so on Thursday.
Animal cruelty investigators are working on getting a warrant for Fernando Ramiro's home, and said they will be presenting the case to the district attorney's office.
An Animal Care Services spokesperson also told News 4 there is no policy mandating that police report possible animal cruelty cases to their department. They are planning on meeting with San Antonio Police Chief Bill McManus to get that changed.
If you see a case of animal abuse, please report it by calling the city toll free at 3-1-1. Case UpdatesThe case of Chiquita is under investigation as a possible state jail felony offense. The city plans to forward it to the district attorney's office this week, said Kathleen McGowan, assistant director of Animal Care Services.
The man accused of hurting the dog could not be reached for comment. His brother-in-law, who didn't witness the incident, said he didn't believe the man used shears to rip off the dog's leg.
"He ain't perfect, but he ain't no psychopath," he said. "He was just trying to nurse the dog."
Eddie Wright, the city's animal cruelty investigator, said lower income animal owners have options should their pet become injured, such as establishing a credit plan with a veterinarian. | Source: My San Antonio - Feb 23, 2007
Update posted on Feb 26, 2007 - 1:54PM |
The Humane Society of the United States is urging the Bexar County District Attorney to file felony charges against the man accused of brutally cutting off a dog's leg with a tree pruner.
On February 21, the HSUS wrote District Attorney Susan Reed, saying "this case concerns us in particular, not only because of the horrific suffering inflicted upon a helpless animal, but also because the behavior of Mr. Romero is indicative of a disturbed psyche that we feel poses a threat to community safety."
�Obviously, we agree wholeheartedly with that and I'm sure the District Attorney's office does as well. They have a good record of prosecuting these types of cases," said Cathy McGowan, representing Animal Care Services.
Animal cruelty investigators turned the case over to the D.A today for felony charges. "It will be a much higher penalty because of the serious nature of the crime," commented McGowan. | Source: WOAI TV - Feb 21, 2007
Update posted on Feb 23, 2007 - 10:42PM |
References« TX State Animal Cruelty Map
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