Kitten kicked to death Troy, NY (US) Incident Date: Monday, Jun 18, 2007 County: Rensselaer Local Map: available Disposition: Alleged Charges: Felony CTA Alleged: Dennis Christensen

Case ID: 11577 Classification: Kicking/Stomping Animal: cat View more cases in NY (US) Abuse was retaliation against animal's bad behavior Login to Watch this Case

Troy police arrested Dennis Christensen on June 18, 2007 after being tipped off that he killed a kitten. Christensen lives in the basement apartment of 407 First Street.

In a voluntary statement to police, he admits killing six week old Creamsicle after the kitten went to the bathroom on the floor. He said, "I got mad and I kicked the cat. The cat hit the door jam after I kicked it and that was it. The cat didn't move after that." Christensen goes on to say that he tried to resuscitate the cat and cried over its death. When he couldn't pump life back into its body, he threw it in the garbage.

"A baby is really what this kitten was. It's just heart wrenching to think about how this animal suffered," said Mohawk and Hudson Humane Society Director Brad Shear. "It's disturbing that someone would allegedly do this to a defenseless six week old kitten," said Rensselaer County District Attorney Patricia DeAngelis.

Christensen remains at the Rensselaer County Jail in lieu of a thousand dollars bail. If the District Attorney has her way, this is where he'll stay. DeAngelis said she's not going to offer a plea deal and her office is pushing for the max under Buster's Law, two years in local jail, which is less than other felonies. "Normally, Ken, what you face is one and a third to four years on the lowest level felony, but that's not true in this case," DeAngelis said.

The District Attorney said she hopes this case will deter further animal abuse, which she said is a growing problem in Rensselaer County. Something Brad Shear knows all too well. "It's probably very under reported. There's more than we know. But like I said, there's always a case happening. Every week something is happening to an animal," Shear said. That's why DeAngelis is forming a county-wide Animal Protection Coalition made up of police officers, vets and expert volunteers to help crack down on accused animal abusers. She says studies have shown these criminals are likely to commit other violent crimes.

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References

	Capital 9 News - June 21, 2007
	North Country Gazette - June 22, 2007

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