Attorneys/Judges
| Defense(s): | Charles Meade | | Judge(s): | Sharon DeVries |
CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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Case #14105 Rating: 1.0 out of 5
Dog punched in the face, kicked in the ribs
Greenland, NH (US)Incident Date: Saturday, May 17, 2008
County: Rockingham
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Carol Pugh
Case Updates: 4 update(s) available
After her Burmese Mountain dog returned from being missing for an hour, Carol Pugh "repeatedly" struck the dog in the face and kicked it in the ribs while it cowered and yelped, allege Greenland police.
Based on those allegations and the fact that she was convicted of animal cruelty in 1997, Pugh, 52, of 685 Portsmouth Ave., is charged with a felony count of animal cruelty.
According to an affidavit by Greenland Officer David Loconte, he was dispatched to Pugh's home on May 17 based on a witness complaint. The witness told police Pugh was angry at the dog because it had run off and "repeatedly struck" and "continued to hit" the animal in the face with an open hand and closed fist. As she hit the dog, the police complaint alleges, she was "swearing and screaming."
Loconte's affidavit says the witness asked Pugh to stop, at which point Pugh began kicking it in the rib area. The dog displayed "signs of obvious fear" and "possible pain" by its cowering and yelping, according to the police report.
Pugh stopped under the witness' protests and tied the dog to a tree, according to Loconte's report. Complaints were made to the N.H. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Greenland police, according to court records.
Pugh was arraigned on the charge in Portsmouth District Court Monday [July 14, 2008] and entered a not guilty plea. She is being represented by attorney Charles Meade and is scheduled to return to the court for an Aug. 5 probable cause hearing.
According to court records, she was convicted for animal cruelty in the same court on Nov. 5, 1997.
Case UpdatesAccording to Rockingham County Attorney Jim Reams, Carol Pugh will be allowed to keep the horses she has on her property because of complications surrounding the fact that her animals were not seized following her most recent arrest in May 2008.
Reams said prosecutors' hands were "effectively tied" on the animal possession issue and he noted there have been no further incidents involving Pugh and animal abuse since her most recent arrest.
Pugh is alleged to have repeatedly struck and kicked her Bernese mountain dog while witnesses tried to stop her.
Court records indicate Pugh was witnessed hitting the dog repeatedly in the face with an open hand and a fist while screaming and swearing at the dog as it cowered and whimpered.
An affidavit indicates a witness told police Pugh was angry at the dog because it had run off.
Pugh was originally facing a felony-level charge because she has been convicted of similar charges twice before.
In November 1997, Pugh was found guilty of animal cruelty and a violation and paid $390 in fines for beating a horse named Honey about the neck with a closed fist more than half a dozen times. In the same year, she was convicted of beating a gray and white dog while holding it against a building and striking it at least four times in the chest.
While her charges were reduced, Reams said prosectors built conditions into her plea agreement that seek to protect her animals from such abuse in the future.
Pugh was fined $500 and sentenced to 12 months in the Rockingham County House of Corrections with all of that time being suspended pending her good behavior for two years.
Her suspended sentence is specifically conditioned upon her good behavior and meaningful participation and successful completion of an anger management course and a SPCA-approved course on the proper handling and training of domestic animals.
Pugh's sentence stipulates she must surrender custody of all animals in her possession to the SPCA and refrain from owning or taking custody of any additional animals, but this condition is suspended for a period of one year conditioned upon her completion of the anger management course.
Reams said her failure to live up to the agreement will trigger the state to have her remaining animals removed.
"I think, under the circumstances, we tried to build in provisions that protect the animals and make sure this doesn't happen again," Reams said.
The county attorney said Pugh no longer owns the Bernese mountain dog whose beating prompted her July 30 plea. | Source: Fosters.com - Aug 6, 2009
Update posted on Aug 6, 2009 - 3:14PM |
A Greenland woman was found guilty of animal cruelty for the third time, given a suspended jail sentence and is being allowed to keep her horses, reports the Portsmouth Herald.
Carol Pugh, 53, of 685 Portsmouth Ave., pleaded guilty in Rockingham County Superior Court on Monday to a misdemeanor count of cruelty to an animal. As part of a plea deal with the prosecution, the charge was reduced from a felony.
The conviction resulted from Pugh’s May 17, 2008 arrest when police said she “repeatedly” struck her Bernese Mountain dog in the face and kicked it in the ribs while it cowered and yelped. A witness said Pugh was angry at the dog because it ran off and she “repeatedly struck” and “continued to hit” the animal in the face with an open hand and closed fist.
As she hit the dog, according to police reports, Pugh was “swearing and screaming.” According to the witness, she asked Pugh to stop, at which point Pugh kicked the dog in the ribs.
Greenland police charged her with a felony because she was previously found guilty of animal cruelty for beating a horse named “Honey” in the neck with her fist eight times on April 29, 1997. She was convicted of her second animal cruelty charge for holding “a grey and white dog” against a building and striking it four times in the chest, also on April 29, 1997. | Source: Bostoin Herald Aug - 5, 2009
Update posted on Aug 6, 2009 - 12:59PM |
A Greenland woman who battered a dog and a horse 11 years ago is expected to appear before a Rockingham County grand jury on a felony charge alleging she abused a different dog.
Carol Pugh, 52, of 685 Portsmouth Ave., waived her right to a Portsmouth District Court probable cause hearing Tuesday on a felony count of animal cruelty. Pugh also waived her appearance, meaning she was not present.
Through attorney Charles Meade, she is pleading not guilty.
District Court Judge Sharon DeVries accepted the waiver, moving the case to the Brentwood Superior Court.
Greenland police allege that on May 17 Pugh "repeatedly" struck her Bernese Mountain dog in the face and kicked it in the ribs while it cowered and yelped. A witness told police Pugh was angry at the dog because it ran off and she "repeatedly struck" and "continued to hit" the animal in the face with an open hand and closed fist. As she hit the dog, the police complaint alleges, she was "swearing and screaming."
Police allege the witness asked Pugh to stop, at which point she kicked the dog in the ribs.
The charge is being levied as a felony because Pugh was previously found guilty of animal cruelty for beating a horse named "Honey" in the neck with a closed fist eight times on April 29, 1997. She was convicted of a second animal cruelty charge for holding "a grey and white dog" against a building and striking it four times in the chest, also on April 29, 1997. | Source: Sea Coast Online - Aug 5, 2008
Update posted on Aug 5, 2008 - 1:47PM |
A Greenland woman convicted once before of animal cruelty denied accusations of repeatedly beating her dog. Carol Pugh, 52, pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges connected to accusations that she struck her Burmese mountain dog in the face and kicked it in the ribs last May.
Police said a witness told investigators that Pugh was angry at the animal for running off.
Pugh was convicted of animal cruelty in 1997. | Source: WMUR - July 14, 2008
Update posted on Jul 16, 2008 - 12:36AM |
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