Puppy mill - 250 dogs, 68 seized - Seale, AL

Tuesday, Feb 12, 2008

County: Russell

Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted

Defendant/Suspect: Diane Brown

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

A Russell County woman is arrested Tuesday afternoon for alleged animal cruelty and neglecting her dogs. Diane Brown was handcuffed at her home located on highway 169 in Seale, Alabama. Brown is charged with two crimes, neglect and animal cruelty both are misdemeanors.

Last Friday [Feb 8, 2008] animal control officers from Phenix City, Russell County and Lee County removed 28 of 250 dogs from the property. Brown raises the animals then sells them as a business. Jason Cooper from Russell County Animal control says Forty more of the dogs were seized Tuesday [Feb 12, 2008] due to many medical problems.

"At this time we're now seizing some of the dogs that have to be picked up for medical reasons due to mange, fleas, heart worms. Just some of the dogs that are the worst off shape are the ones we're going to pick up today".

Diane Brown was taken to the Russell County jail Tuesday [Feb 12, 2008] afternoon. Both animal cruelty charges are misdemeanors. The bond for each charge is one thousand dollars a piece. The dogs taken Tuesday will not be up for adoption due to their medical problems. The 28 dogs seized last friday at Brown's home are being cared for at the Phenix City Animal Shelter. Those dogs are healthy and can be adopted.

Case Updates

A woman was convicted Monday in Russell County Circuit Court of running an illegal puppy mill, housing nearly 300 animals at her home. Assistant District Attorney Greg Waldrep said Dianne Brown of Seale, Ala., was found guilty of cruelty to animals through "cruel neglect." The animals were untrained and neglected and caged in unsanitary conditions. The court gave Brown a $150 fine plus court costs, 90 days probation and ordered her to keep no more than two dogs as personal pets. "At least temporarily, she is not to have any other dogs for the purpose of selling, kenneling or breeding," Waldrep said. There will be a future court hearing to determine if Brown has taken steps to improve the conditions where she housed 284 dogs for sale. Waldrep said the case came to the attention of Russell County authorities when a woman looking for a pet for her daughter answered a newspaper ad. "She and her daughter went out there and actually bought an animal from Brown and the woman was horrified by the conditions that she found the other animals in," Waldrep said. "The dog that she bought was basically uncivilized -- it had not been around humans. It was just caged and wild." Brown was arrested Feb. 12 at her home off Ala. 169. Animal control officers removed more than two dozen animals from the property four days prior to the arrest and put them up for adoption at the Phenix City Animal Shelter. An additional 40 dogs were seized on the day of the arrest for medical reasons.

Source: style="color: #A4A4A4;">Update posted on Mar 25, 2008 - 3:40PM

References

• « AL State Animal Cruelty Map
  « More cases in Russell County, AL

  Note: Classifications and other fields should not be used to determine what specific charges the suspect is facing or was convicted of - they are for research and statistical purposes only. The case report and subsequent updates outline the specific charges. Charges referenced in the original case report may be modified throughout the course of the investigation or trial, so case updates, when available, should always be considered the most accurate reflection of charges.
  
  For more information regarding classifications and usage of this database, please visit the database notes and disclaimer.