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Case #13563 Rating: 3.0 out of 5
Dog-fighting - 32 dogs seized
Daytona Beach, FL (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Mar 27, 2008
County: Volusia
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 5 files available
Defendants/Suspects:
» Theodore Alonzo Lock
» Tharvellus Walker
» Wylene Walker
Case Updates: 3 update(s) available
Police confiscated 32 dogs on Tuesday that were allegedly part of a dogfighting ring in northeast Florida. Daytona Beach police arrived at the home with a search warrant for drugs.
However, a police video shows that the officers found abused dogs with scars, deformities and tumors. Some of the animals were tethered in filthy conditions with no food or water.
A police department spokesman said drugs used to make the dogs tougher also were found.
The dogs' owner said he never trained them to fight.
Theodore Lock said the dogs were tied up "because they got loose. ... But they wasn't being fighting."
The dogs were taken to the Humane Society.
Police said no charges have yet been filed in the case.
Case UpdatesAfter viewing pictures of new and old scars and wounds on some of the pit bulls -- seized from the home in March 2008 -- and hearing from witnesses who said it was Lock who cared for the dogs, the jury of four women and two men agreed. They took just 15 minutes to find Lock guilty of animal fighting, the first time such a verdict has been reached locally.
Lock, 47, was then sentenced to five years in prison by Circuit Judge J. David Walsh, who called the case one of the most disturbing he'd seen. In giving a more severe sentence than prosecutors asked for, Walsh further prohibited Lock from owning "any animal that is a dog" for 10 years, and banned him from fighting dogs for life.
"I find this crime to be one of the most offensive violations of the law I've encountered," the judge said, telling Lock that he hoped the punishment would be a deterrent to others.
The animal-fighting ring, which prosecutors called significant, came to light last March when the dogs were discovered and seized after a drug bust at the home. Since then, all but an adult dog and two puppies have been euthanized because of health and temperament problems.
Before trial, two of Lock's relatives pleaded no contest last week to charges stemming from their arrests. Lock's nephew, Tharvellus Walker, got two years in prison. When Walker was called by prosecutors to testify Wednesday, he said he was trying to help his uncle. He denied he or Lock engaged in animal fighting.
Perhaps unwittingly, Walker helped get Lock convicted, by saying he was the person who cared for the dogs.
Animal fighting cases rarely result in arrests, let alone convictions, because of the secret nature of the crime. As is typical with dogfighting, Lock's case provided a challenge for prosecutor Dennis Craig because there were no witnesses who said they saw dog fights. They didn't need to.
Craig explained to the jury all he had to prove was that Lock owned or possessed dogs that were used for fighting.
"All of these dogs were used for dogfighting over a very long period of time," he said. "We know they were fought because of all of the injuries."
To prove Lock guilty of animal fighting, a county animal control officer was asked to lug out several 20-pound chains found holding some of the dogs in place. Such chains, the investigator said, are used to strengthen fighting dogs.
"These chains have no legitimate purpose for animals," said Greg Anest, investigator with Volusia County Animal Services.
There were muscle building chemicals found at the home and a specially made stick used to pry animals apart. When the jury was shown a video recording of the dogs' injuries, some of the animals appeared to struggle under the heavy chains. One had two fresh wounds around its eyes. Another had a large cyst on its back legs.
"The smell was overwhelming from the urine," Anest said.
Lock's court-appointed defense lawyer Steve Burk suggested his client was not the right suspect. He said there was proof Lock hadn't been to the home shortly before his arrest because a stack of his mail was found unopened.
Police in Daytona Beach have hunted for dogfighting arrests for years, although they have been rare.
In 2007, former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison for his role in a dogfighting ring.
That high-profile case was on Craig's mind when Lock was led away in handcuffs.
"He got sentenced to a lot more than Michael Vick," he said. | Source: East Volusia News - Feb 22, 2009
Update posted on Feb 22, 2009 - 2:37PM |
Prosecutors told a Volusia jury this morning that the evidence found at a Daytona Beach home last year -- pit bulls with head and front leg injuries, testosterone and performance enhancing drugs and medicinal balms --point to a dogfighting operation.
Theodore Lock, 48, faces trial this week on charges that he raised the dogs for dogfighting, and that he kept the dogs unlawfully confined in cramped boxes, with only small airholes.
Jurors in Daytona Beach began hearing evidence in Lock's trial today. The prosecutor, Assistant State Attorney Dennis Craig, told jurors that the evidence being presented during the two-day trial will include photos and videos of the dogs and their injuries, heavy chains that can be used on the dogs to build muscle strength, as well as various antibiotics, testosterone, and other performance enhancing drugs found at the house. However, Lock's defense attorney, Steve Burk, told jurors that there isn't evidence that Lock lived there, though he was asked to help care for the dogs a couple of days a week.
The trial before Chief Circuit Judge J. David Walsh is expected to end Friday.
In March 2008, a narcotics task force had executed a search warrant at a Daytona Beach house because of suspicions of drug activity and found the 32 pit bulls at the house. The home is owned by Lock's sister, Wylene Walker, and Lock's nephew, Tharvellus Walker, lived at the house.
Both Walkers were also charged with owning dogs for dogfighting and have pleaded to their charges.
Tharvellus Walker was sentenced to two years in prison for the charge, while his mother was sentenced to two years probation. | Source: Orlando Sentinel - Feb 19, 2009
Update posted on Feb 19, 2009 - 12:58PM |
In a hushed courtroom, a video showed the misery that 32 pit bulls suffered at a house on Tucker Street.
After a three-hour hearing to determine the fate of the dogs Wednesday, a Volusia County judge had seen and heard enough to convince him the animals should not be returned to the owners because he said they were neglected and used for dogfighting.
In addition, County Judge David Foxman ordered dog owners Tharvellus Walker, Wylene Walker and Theodore Lock to pay more than $11,000 to the Humane Society for the medical care and upkeep of the 31 remaining canines and four puppies that have since been born to one of the females. One dog had to be destroyed.
The trio, who face criminal charges including animal cruelty, dogfighting and confinement, also were prohibited from owning any dogs for at least a decade.
The Walkers, who are mother and son, denied involvement, while Lock told the judge he did his best caring for the pit bulls.
Daytona Beach Police Officer Liz Devlin said the seizure was "just a drop in the bucket" because dogfighting is "so prevalent in Daytona Beach."
Devlin, who is certified in animal cruelty and has been investigating animal abuse and dogfighting cases for most of her 14-year stint with Daytona Beach, said the Michael Vick case has brought it more to the public's attention. Vick, the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback, is serving a federal prison term after being convicted of operating a dogfighting ring in Virginia.
The Humane Society of the United States calls dogfighting "a highly organized underground movement, often involving other crimes such as drug and weapons trafficking, prostitution and money laundering."
The pit bulls seized on Tucker Street were found after a drug task force with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office served a warrant on Tharvellus Walker on March 27, reports show. Task force investigators found the dogs in the backyard and called Daytona Beach police.
A handful of animal advocates filed into Foxman's courtroom to ensure the pit bulls were not returned to the defendants.
"We were here to make sure this didn't get shoved under the rug," said Cheryl Robel, of Concerned Citizens for Animal Welfare.
The video, taken by animal control officers Greg Anest and Steve Bostick, showed at least 11 dogs kept in wooden crates with only one or two ventilation holes; 16 dogs tied to stakes with 20- and 25-pound chains commonly used in the logging industry; and five puppies with bloated stomachs caused by worms rolling around in their own feces and urine. At least three of the dogs had grapefruit-size cysts hanging from their bodies that made it hard for them to sit or lie down.
One image, in particular, elicited moans from the public. It showed a thin, dark-colored pit bull that could hardly bear the weight of the massive chain attached to its collar. The animal struggled to stand up and a bloody gash kept its right eye half-shut.
"You are not fit to have further custody," Foxman said.
The dogs are being kept at Halifax Humane Society. Foxman said their fate will be left to officials there. | Source: News Journal Online - April 17, 2008
Update posted on Apr 17, 2008 - 11:54AM |
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