CONVICTED: Was justice served?
more information on voting
When you vote, you are voting on whether or not the punishment fit the crime, NOT on the severity of the case itself. If you feel the sentence was very weak, you would vote 1 star. If you feel the sentence was very strong, you would vote 5 stars.
Please vote honestly and realistically. These ratings will be used a a tool for many future programs, including a "People’s Choice" of best and worst sentencing, DA and judge "report cards", and more. Try to resist the temptation to vote 1 star on every case, even if you feel that 100 years in prison isn’t enough.
Case #12935 Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Dog-fighting - 6 dogs seized
Williamson, NY (US)Incident Date: Monday, Apr 16, 2007
County: Wayne
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Percy S. Jackson
The Sodus man accused of training pit bulls for what Wayne County District Attorney Richard Healy called the "barbaric blood sport" of dog fighting, accepted a plea to spend 18 months behind bars.
Percy S. Jackson, 26, of 5472 VanLare Road, was sentenced by Wayne County Court Justice Dennis Kehoe Tuesday after pleading guilty to felony animal fighting and animal abuse. In addition to the jail time, Jackson was ordered to pay $2,500 in fines, $1,010 in restitution to the Humane Society and may not own or possess any animals for 35 years. Had Jackson chosen to go to trial, he faced a maximum sentence of up to four years in state prison if convicted.
The case, Healy said, is the first involving dogs used for fighting prosecuted in Wayne County.
"We've heard rumors over the years in Wayne County about dog fighting, but never had any solid leads," he said.
The lead in this instance, Healy said, came from a person who saw the dogs, became suspicious and contacted local authorities.
When Cruelty Inv. Mark Plyter went to the VanLare Road property last April, he said he estimated about 10 canines were shackled in heavy chains to dog houses scattered throughout the woods.
"It was extremely muddy," he said. "They were standing in mud and feces and I could not see any food or water. A couple looked emaciated."
Six of the dogs were seized when a search warrant was executed April 27. Jackson told authorities that he gave the other four dogs to a friend, but would not reveal the person's name, Healy said.
The dogs were taken to the Humane Society of Rochester and Monroe County's Lollypop Farm for evaluation by a veterinarian who specializes in animal abuse.
"Four had wounds typically found with fighting on the face, neck, front shoulders and front feet-puncture wounds," said Josh Muller, a cruelty investigator at the Humane Society.
Based on the conditions found on the property, a second warrant was issued to search Jackson's mobile home. Inside, state police found veterinary drugs, hypodermic needles, wound dressing supplies, a suture remover, a treadmill, literature on how to train dogs for fighting and spring poles - a device that hangs by a rope from a tree with a chain and clip. Dogs are trained to jump up, lock their jaws around the chain and hang from the device. Healy said it is used to strengthen the animal's jaw.
After being checked out at Lollypop Farm, custody of the dogs was turned over to Plyter at the Wayne County Humane Society. Plyter said attempts were made to rehabilitate the canines. One dog was successfully adopted. The other five, he said, were too aggressive and had to be euthanized.
The dogs, Healy said were raised and trained in Sodus, but the actual fights took place in the city of Rochester.
"We weren't surprised the training was done in Wayne County," he said. "That's what they do, go out to rural areas where there is room to run. They can't raise and train dogs in the city. VanLare Road is very rural. These dogs were in the woods. You could almost not see them from the road."
The last local case involving animal fighting was in March 2006, when 71-year-old Luis Vega of Macedon was charged with 59 counts of training roosters to fight. Besides that case, Healy said, in his 17 years as DA he's only prosecuted one other case of cock fighting.
Neither Healy nor Plyter think what was happening on VanLare Road is an isolated incident in Wayne County. And, that's why a $1,000 reward - $500 from the county and $500 from the Humane Society - is offered locally for information leading to an arrest for animal fighting. An additional $5,000 is also offered from the United States Humane Society.
"I think more are definitely out there," Plyter said. "People should be aware when they see a whole bunch of dogs chained up in the woods that it's obvious they're not put there to be pets." References« NY State Animal Cruelty Map
« More cases in Wayne County, NY
|
