Dog-fighting - 15 dogs seized
Boynton Beach, FL (US)Incident Date: Sunday, Sep 16, 2007
County: Palm Beach
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Defendants/Suspects:
» Ricky Norfus
» Sam Denson
» Paul Green
Case Updates: 4 update(s) available
Boynton Beach Police have broken up what they call a major dog fighting ring.
Sunday, two men were arrested and charged with running an illegal dog fighting operation. A total of 15 pit bulls were taken from the men's homes. They will likely be destroyed because they cannot be rehabilitated.
During the raid on the men's homes, police say they found equipment used to train the dogs for fighting, including a handmade treadmill used to strengthen the dogs' muscles.
Investigators are searching for a third man who allegedly helped run the dog fighting operation.
Case UpdatesThree Boynton Beach men accused of dog fighting have pled guilty to drastically reduced charges on August 13, 2010.
Ricky Norfus, Samuel Denson, and Paul Green went on trial last year facing up to 20 years in prison.
In the courtroom, jurors were shown a re-assembled dog fighting ring, but the trial ended with a hung jury.
Today, all three men pleaded guilty to animal cruelty--a misdemeanor and received probation. | Source: CBS12.com - Aug 13, 2010
Update posted on Aug 24, 2010 - 2:02PM |
Jurors deadlocked 4-2 in favor of acquitting the men, each charged with three felony counts of animal fighting and one count of conspiracy.
A new trial is set to begin Monday morning, February 23rd, at the Palm Beach County Courthouse, 3rd Ave, West Palm Beach, Felony Division T, Courtroom 11-H. | Source: Palm Beach Post - Feb 20, 2009
Update posted on Feb 20, 2009 - 11:34AM |
A makeshift plywood pen where Boynton Beach police say pit bull terriers fought for their lives fills an 11th floor Palm Beach County courtroom where three men stand charged with siccing the dogs on each other for sport.
Jurors in the case against Paul Green, 37, Samuel Denson, 35, and Ricky Norfus, 36, will see - and smell - the mildewed portable corral for the first time this morning as they begin the second day of a trial one defense attorney suggested is more about race and the breed of the dog than about dogfighting.
"What you end up with in this case is you have dogs, you have three black males, you have Boynton Beach, and you have pit bulls," said Norfus' attorney Dean Wilbur during opening remarks Tuesday. "And you have a community where an animal control division has decided that because of these circumstances there is no conclusion but that they were dogfighting."
The men are each charged with three felony counts of animal fighting and one count of conspiracy for allegedly running an underground animal fighting organization called Camp 8 Kennels.
Police raided their homes on a Sunday in September 2007 after a tip that they were dogfighting.
Fifteen pit bulls were taken from the homes, at least three of which Assistant State Attorney Destinie Baker said Tuesday had wounds that a veterinarian will testify were caused by dogfighting.
Other items found at the homes include a bloody carpet remnant that police say fits the wooden enclosure, a treadmill made of wooden slats to build up a dog's endurance, skin-staplers used to close wounds, breeding schedules, and an IV drip line with instructions on how to administer it to a 40-pound pit bull.
At least one cellphone, that of Denson, contained pictures of dogs being bred, Baker said. "Each defendant had at least one dog on their property that had injuries consistent with dogfighting," Baker told jurors. "I just want to emphasize the injuries are to the front of the dogs' bodies."
Finding a impartial jury for the case was a challenge for attorneys who quizzed potential jurors for a day-and-a-half about animals and the vilified American pit bull terrier, in particular. The attorneys asked jurors about what they thought of people who own multiple pit bulls.
Dogfighting gained renewed national attention in 2007 when authorities charged former NFL quarterback Michael Vick with running a dogfighting ring. Vick was given a 23-month federal sentence after admitting that he bankrolled the dogfighting operation and helped kill six to eight dogs.
Defense attorneys for Green, Denson and Norfus said their dogs were healthy and treated well, and that breeding pit bulls was just a hobby shared between friends who grew up together.
"You will find that all the dogs were nourished, well cared for and healthy," Wilbur said. "No one is going to take that witness stand and tell you they saw a dogfight. No one is going to take that witness stand and tell you they purchased a dog that was ever used for fighting."
The trial before Circuit Judge Krista Marx is expected to last through Friday. | Source: Palm Beach Post - Jan 14, 2009
Update posted on Jan 16, 2009 - 2:11AM |
The third of three men who allegedly ran a longstanding dog-fighting ring turned himself in this afternoon, police said.
Ricky Norfus, 35, will be interviewed by Boynton Beach police investigators and then taken to the Palm Beach County Jail, said Stephanie Slater, police spokeswoman.
Police on Sunday searched Norfus' Northeast 6th Avenue home and discovered seven pit bulls chained in the backyard; some showed "extensive scarring." Also in the backyard were a disassembled, wooden dog-fighting ring, which was stained with blood, and a hanging rope used for strengthening dogs' jaws, polices said.
Inside Norfus' home police found a welding device outfitted with clamps, which could be attached to a poor-performing dog and used to electrocute it to death.
However, police have yet to recover bodies of any executed dogs.
Two other men, Sam Denson, 34, and Paul Green, 36, were arrested Sunday, police said.
All the men face charges of baiting, training or possessing animals for fighting; possessing equipment for fighting; and conspiracy to commit animal fighting.
Fifteen dogs were seized in the case. They're expected to be euthanized, Slater said. | Source: Palm Beach Post - Sept 17, 2007
Update posted on Sep 17, 2007 - 8:19PM |
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