Kitten kicked to death in park
Narangba, QLD (AU)Incident Date: Wednesday, Jun 27, 2007
Disposition: Acquitted
Person of Interest: Shane Moore
Case Updates: 2 update(s) available
A teenager has been jailed for a month after he kicked a kitten to death in a suburban park.
Shane Moore, 18, of Narangba, pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty when he faced the Caboolture Magistrate's Court yesterday.
Before the teen was led away to the cells, acting magistrate Peter Hasted told Moore he had ended the kitten's life in a brutal way, and that his behaviour had been "absolutely hideous and revolting".
The court was told two boys saw Moore kick the kitten twice in a Narangba park on June 27, 2006.
The animal – whose name was Bubbles – was later found dead.
Its liver had ruptured in two places and a vet believed it had died because of a severe blow to the abdomen.
The maximum penalty for animal cruelty is $75,000 or two years in prison, and the RSPCA called for Moore to be jailed.
But defence lawyer Fiona Graham argued against a prison term, saying her client had nearly completed a trade apprenticeship and hoped to become a tiler.
She said he was 17 at the time of the offence and had a great deal of support from his family.
Ms Graham said that on the day of the offence, the kitten had been brushing up against Moore in the park.
She said Moore had initially patted the animal but then began shoo-ing it, and couldn't explain the actions that followed.
"Something kicked in and he kicked it to get rid of it. He doesn't know why he did this," Ms Graham said.
She said the kitten walked into bushes and Moore didn't follow it to see if it was all right.
Ms Graham said Moore was extremely remorseful, and suggested he be placed on probation and community service orders.
"He's only 18, he has his whole life ahead of him."
Acting magistrate Peter Hasted took in to account that Moore was a productive member of the community, but labelled his actions as an atrocious act of savagery.
He sentenced the 18-year-old to one month in prison, followed by 18 months probation on his release.
Fiery scenes erupted as Moore was led to the cells, telling his mother he loved her as she fought to reach him.
She also hurled abuse at the owners of Bubbles who were in the courtroom.
Outside court, one of Bubbles' owners Sterling Bower said he was pleased with the decision.
"This sends a clear message to anyone out there who thinks they can just go and do acts of cruelty against animals," he said.
"It is not tolerated, it is not on, and I tell you what, they are going to come down hard on you and rightly so."
Mr Bower said Bubbles was only three months old and a treasured pet of his partner's children, aged 8 and 10.
"He was quite small, he was a very affectionate cat and he'd follow people," he said. "He made his way over to the park on an adventure where a group of kids were and that's where he met his final destination."
Case UpdatesA Brisbane teenager who kicked a kitten to death after it affectionately rubbed up against him in a suburban park had his conviction overturned this morning.
Last November, Shane Moore, 18, of Narangba, pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty in the Caboolture Magistrates Court and was sentenced to one month jail by magistrate Peter Hasted who described the crime as ``atrocious and indiscriminate acts of wanton savagery.''
However, he only spent five days behind bars for the June 27, 2006, attack on the 12 week old kitten before his lawyer successfully requested he be released from custody until the outcome of an appeal.
Earlier this week, defence barrister Brian Devereaux, SC, argued in the Brisbane District Court that his clients' sentence was "manifestly excessive'' and compared the matter to six Townsville-based soldiers who escaped jail in 2004 after pleading guilty to setting a litter of three-week-old stray kittens on fire before running them over. | Source: News.Com.Au - May 9, 2008
Update posted on May 9, 2008 - 3:49PM |
A Brisbane teenager who kicked a kitten to death after it affectionately rubbed up against him in a suburban park now wants his conviction overturned to help him get an apprenticeship.
In November, Shane Moore, 18, of Narangba, north of Brisbane, pleaded guilty to one count of animal cruelty in the Caboolture Magistrate's Court.
He was sentenced to a month in jail by magistrate Peter Hasted, who described the crime as "atrocious and indiscriminate acts of wanton savagery".
But he only spent five days behind bars for the June 27, 2006, attack on the 12-week old kitten before his lawyer successfully requested he be released pending the outcome of an appeal. Yesterday, defence barrister Brian Devereaux, SC, argued in the Brisbane District Court that his client's sentence was "manifestly excessive".
Mr Devereaux compared the matter to six Townsville soldiers who escaped jail in 2004 after pleading guilty to setting a litter of three-week-old stray kittens on fire before running them over.
He also said the sentence compared unfavourably to that of a man, 59, who got three months' jail after he clubbed five cats to death and of another man who placed a rubber band around his dog's penis, urinated on it and broke its leg after it urinated on his carpet.
Mr Devereaux, who said his client's actions were not premeditated, said Moore was sacked from a tiling apprenticeship after being jailed last year.
The Crown said it would dispute those claims if necessary.
Moore's sentence fell far short of the maximum penalty for animal cruelty of $75,000 or two years' jail.
Moore could not explain why he kicked the kitten other than "something had kicked in".
The animal - whose name was Bubbles - was later found dead. Its liver had ruptured in two places and a vet believed it had died because of a severe blow to the abdomen.
Judge William Everson said that the past cases cited by Mr Devereaux were different.
"To put a rubber band around a dog's penis, to urinate on it, to break its leg . . . must have its origins in a desire to torture. (Moore) was more of an inappropriate act of aggression," Judge Everson said.
"And (in relation to the Townsville soldiers) they clearly killed the animals in an inhumane way -- didn't they set them on fire and run over them?
"There is a difference between that sort of behaviour and the type of behaviour where people use excessive force to get rid of it."
He reserved his decision until late in the week. | Source: News.Com.Au - May 7, 2008
Update posted on May 6, 2008 - 3:32PM |
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