Attorneys/Judges
| Prosecutor(s): | Lindsay Mueller | | Judge(s): | Judge Timmerman |
Dog-fighting - 18 dogs seized
Tampa, FL (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008
County: Hillsborough
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged:
» Maurice Franklin Bayless
» Celena Danielle Brantley - Convicted
Case Updates: 3 update(s) available
A Tampa man fought dogs and trained the animals to fight, police say.
Police arrested Maurice F. Bayless, 46, of Tampa on Tuesday after a court-ordered search of his home found 18 dogs and dogfighting paraphernalia.
According to an arrest report:
Three of the dogs at 6312 S. Selbourne Ave. had what appeared to be fighting wounds.
Eight were puppies for sale, and one dog was "being conditioned and trained to fight."
Bayless, who has a tattoo on his right arm that says, " 'GOING HARD' DOGS FIGHTING," also possessed scales, injectable medications and training equipment.
He was charged with one count of possessing animal fight paraphernalia, three counts of dogfighting, five counts of possessing animal fight publications/records and three counts of training or breeding dogs for fighting. He also was charged with possessing less than 20 grams of marijuana.
Bayless remained in Orient Road Jail today. His bail was set at $24,500.
Case UpdatesIt took jurors less than an hour today to convict a Tampa woman of five felony dog fighting charges.
Celena Brantley, 35, faces up to five years imprisonment on each count. She is slated to be sentenced in October.
Brantley and her boyfriend, Maurice Bayless, 47, were arrested in April 2008 after inspectors with Hillsborough County Animal services and Tampa police detectives discovered 18 pit bull terriers, three scarred with dog bites, and what they said was dog-fighting paraphernalia.
Brantley tried to push the blame toward Bayless during the two-day trial. He will be tried separately.
Assistant State Attorney Natalia Silver told jurors in her closing statement that it was unreasonable to believe Brantley remained in the dark after living with Bayless for two years.
"Ms. Brantley knew and understood everything that was going on in that house," Silver said. "She can't hide from that."
Brantley was convicted of one count of owning equipment for dog fighting; three counts of owning or possessing a dog for fighting for the three battle-scarred dogs; and a count of promoting a dog baiting. She was also convicted of a misdemeanor possessing drug paraphernalia count.
Assistant Public Defender Andres Sanchez called the prosecution's case a string of assumptions and erroneous conclusions.
"You can't find people guilty because they should have known better," he said.
Lisa Centonze, a veterinarian with the Hillsborough County Animal Services, said the wounds found on two of the adult dogs found at the couple's Selbourne Avenue home were consistent with being fought. She said the injuries of a third could have been from fighting or forced breeding, a practice Silver said was popular in the dog-fighting world.
Silver relied on a videotape showing Bayless pitting one of the injured dogs, Roger Ramjet, against another in the couple's home. A woman was using the camera and voiced observations about what was happening.
Cpl. Kenneth Vetzel, an Animal Services inspector, identified the voice as that of Brantley.
Sanchez said his client was never shown on the video and there was no way of knowing when it was shot.
Silver said it was found in the couple's bedroom in a camcorder that was plugged in and charging.
That was the incident of dog baiting of which the jury convicted Brantley.
Testimony showed Roger Ramjet was found wearing a weighted collar authorities said was used to strengthen a dog's neck muscles for fighting. Centonze said there was no medical reason for using such a device.
Silver also presented boxes of medications Centonze said could have been used to treat dogs injured in fights.
Brantley did not testify and called no witnesses.
When he was arrested, Bayless had a tattoo on his right arm that said ""GOING HARD' DOGS FIGHTING''
Journals taken from the house showed Bayless called his operation Going Hard Kennels. | Source: TBO.com - Aug 11, 2009
Update posted on Aug 13, 2009 - 3:33PM |
Testimony began today in the trial of a 35-year-old Tampa woman who, along with her boyfriend, face dog-fighting charges.
Celena Brantley and Maurice Bayless, 47, were arrested in April 2008 after inspectors with Hillsborough County Animal services and Tampa Police detectives discovered 18 dogs and what they said was dog-fighting paraphernalia.
Brantley is being tried separately. Bayless' attorney requested more time to prepare.
Assistant State Attorney Natalia Silver told jurors three of the adult dogs found at the couple's Selbourne Avenue home had wounds consistent with being fought. She said one, named Roger Ramjet, was found wearing a weighted collar she said was used to strengthen a dog's neck muscles.
"He had bite marks on his face, ears and front forearms consistent with animal fighting," she said.
Silver said officers seized "voluminous amounts" of medications used to treat fighting wounds and books and magazines about dog fighting.
Assistant Public Defender Jennifer Welker told jurors the medications were used to "make the dogs feel better" and the weighted collar was used because Roger Ramjet was weak and sickly.
"Sometimes things are just what they are," she said. "It doesn't have to have a sinister reason behind it."
Welker said authorities jumped to conclusions and her client had no participation in dog fighting.
When he was arrested, Bayless had a tattoo on his right arm that said "GOING HARD' DOGS FIGHTING''
Testimony will continue Tuesday. | Source: TBO.com - Aug 10, 2009
Update posted on Aug 10, 2009 - 10:19PM |
A Tampa woman arrested today on charges of fighting dogs is the girlfriend of a man arrested on dogfighting charges this week, an animal services spokeswoman says. Police arrested Celena Danielle Brantley, 33, April 4 afternoon.
On Tuesday, police arrested Maurice F. Bayless, 46, of Tampa on Tuesday after a court-ordered search of his home found 18 dogs and dogfighting paraphernalia.
"They believe she is every bit as involved as he," Hillsborough County Animal Services spokeswoman Marti Ryan said.
Bayless' bail was set at $24,500. He has since been released from jail.
Brantley was charged with four counts of fighting animals, five counts of possessing animal fight publications/records, three counts of training or breeding dogs for fighting and one count each of possessing drug paraphernalia and possessing less than 20 grams of marijuana.
She remained in Orient Road Jail today. Her bail was set at $25,000 | Source: MSNBC - April 4, 2008
Update posted on Apr 7, 2008 - 10:22PM |
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