Attorneys/Judges
| Prosecutor(s): | John Conard | | Defense(s): | Corey Sherman | | Judge(s): | Margaret Marrinan |
CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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Case #14320 Rating: 2.6 out of 5
Kitten thrown, dies
St Paul, MN (US)Incident Date: Monday, May 12, 2008
County: Ramsey
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Scott Michael Turner
Case Updates: 5 update(s) available
Scott Michael Turner is accused of throwing the kitten, named Nilla, against a wall in a St. Paul apartment during an argument with his pregnant girlfriend. The 23-week-old kitten died.
"I guess he thought she was paying more attention to the cat than to him," said Lisa Lewis, the neighbor who owned the cat.
She said that when she confronted Turner, whom prosecutors charged with felony animal cruelty Tuesday, he said: "She made me mad, and I accidentally threw it against the wall."
The cat had a fractured skull and a swollen brain, and its left eye had popped out of its socket, Lewis said. Nilla had to be euthanized.
"You don't do that accidentally with that much force," Lewis said.
Turner's 25-year-old girlfriend - who police said is six months pregnant with his child - said Lewis let her watch Nilla occasionally "because it made her happy," the complaint said.
"The strategic use of this animal to get at his girlfriend is pathological," Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner said. "A 23-week-old kitten - what could be sweeter, and (what could) frighten his girlfriend more than abusing that innocent kitten? A crime like this, an act like this, against a pet, basically screams, 'I could do this to you.' "
Police were called at 8:37 p.m. Monday, after Turner's girlfriend and Turner got into an argument at their apartment at 1034 Suburban Ave., said Peter Panos, St. Paul police spokesman. The woman, who wasn't identified in the complaint, wasn't injured.
Turner, 29, had been drinking, Panos said. When Turner and his girlfriend starting arguing, he told her to take the kitten back to the neighbor's apartment, Panos said. The woman refused and went into the kitchen. She then heard a loud thud, Panos said.
The woman looked around the corner and saw the kitten lying motionless on the floor, next to the wall, Panos said. Turner left the apartment, and the woman called police.
Lewis said she found her cat in Turner's apartment.
"She's laying there, blood coming out of her mouth," she said. "She's laying there twitching."
Lewis said she got Nilla to keep her dog, a Pomeranian-poodle mix, company. She's now left with a $244 veterinary bill and a cat that had to be put to sleep, and "my dog's walking around depressed."
"It was totally unprovoked. What kind of animal does that?" she asked of Turner's behavior.
Officers later found Turner outside his mother's home in the 400 block of West Maryland Avenue. He resisted arrest, and police used a chemical agent to get him into custody, a police report said.
Turner, who is being held in the Ramsey County Jail, has convictions for drug possession, obstructing legal process and receiving stolen property. He declined a Pioneer Press interview request.
A summit on the link between animal and domestic abuse was held in St. Paul last year, and a coalition began meeting regularly on the subject in January, said Jane Hunt, program coordinator for Partners for Violence Prevention.
The St. Paul organization has been convening the meetings with representatives from St. Paul police, the Ramsey County attorney's office, the Humane Society of the United States, the Animal Humane Association and others.
"The whole area has really been getting a lot more attention," Hunt said. "People who work in battered women's shelters have known this for a long time. I used to work with children in shelters, and I'd hear the horror stories of how their pets were killed in front of them. It's an incredibly powerful tool to silence a woman or a child or to get them to do what they want."
St. Paul police now ask domestic violence victims whether pets are being abused in their homes, said Cmdr. Shari Gray, who heads the department's family violence unit. The coalition is working to get veterinarians to ask questions when they see an abused animal, to find out if there also may be human abuse, Gray said.
Case UpdatesThe St. Paul man convicted of throwing a cat against a wall in a fight with his girlfriend was sentenced today to probation in the related crime of making terroristic threats against the cat's owner.
Scott Michael Turner, 29, tried to withdraw his guilty plea to the terroristic threats charge.
When Ramsey County District Judge Rosanne Nathanson asked him why, he said, "Well, the reason why is 'cause I didn't do it... She said throughout the summer I was making comments and threatening her, and I wasn't."
Prosecutor John Conard argued that the plea should stand, and that Turner made it "knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily."
Turner was sentenced to seven months in jail on the animal cruelty charge for hurting the cat, Nilla, who had to be put down.
His girlfriend had been playing with it the night of May 12 and wanted to continue. Turner wanted her to bring it back to its owner, Lisa Lewis, who lived in a neighboring apartment at 1034 Suburban Ave. in St. Paul.
While that case was pending, Turner told Lewis that she'd better not testify against him, or "the same thing that happened to your cat can happen to you," according to the criminal complaint.
The judge denied Turner's request to withdraw his plea.
When she started to explain her reasoning, Turner interrupted, saying, "Alright, whatever." Nathanson said she'd appreciate it if he let her continue.
Turner has about two months yet to serve on the animal cruelty conviction. He will then be on probation for five years. If he misbehaves on probation, he could serve 18 months. | Source: Twincities.Com - Nov 20, 2008
Update posted on Nov 20, 2008 - 11:16PM |
First a kitten. Then a baby? That's what Ramsey County District Judge Margaret Marrinan wondered aloud as she prepared to sentence Scott Michael Turner, of St. Paul, to seven months in jail for throwing a cat against a wall during an argument with his pregnant girlfriend.
The cat, Nilla, was so severely injured it had to be euthanized.
Turner, 29, was convicted of felony animal cruelty in the case. Now, he is the father of an infant boy.
"This is my greatest fear," Marrinan told Turner. "That you will be back in this court as a child abuser, or a person who will kill a child."
Turner and his girlfriend, Jennifer DuPaul, 25, were arguing May 12 in their apartment at 1034 Suburban Ave. in St. Paul because she wanted to keep on playing with the cat and Turner wanted to return it to its owner, Lisa Lewis, 42, who lived across the hall.
Turner was angry that DuPaul was paying more attention to the cat than she was to him, Lewis testified at trial.
Turner hurled the kitten against the wall, leaving it twitching and bleeding from its mouth. He maintained during trial that the cat had fallen off his shoulder and that he accidentally stepped on it.
The judge sentenced Turner to 15 months in prison but stayed that sentence as long as he remains on good behavior when he is out of jail. He will serve the seven months in jail, then will be on probation for four years.
Turner also must complete inpatient drug treatment, probably after serving the jail sentence. He must stay away from drugs and alcohol and make restitution to the kitten's owner, with whom he is allowed no contact.
He is not allowed to have pets.
DuPaul asked the court to lift a no-contact order barring Turner from contacting her - which she consistently has opposed. Marrinan agreed.
But Marrinan told DuPaul the jury saw her come to court with black eyes, though discussion of domestic violence against her occurred outside the jury's presence.
She cautioned that the same thing could happen to the couple's baby once Turner gets out of jail.
"You are the person who will be responsible for protecting that child," the judge told DuPaul. "And I strongly suggest that the first time that (abuse) happens, you contact the police."
In a related case, Turner earlier pleaded guilty to making terroristic threats against Lewis before she testified in the case.
He had told the cat's owner, "You better not show up to court tomorrow if you know what's good for you."
He will be sentenced in that case Oct. 30. | Source: Twincities.Com - Sept 24, 2008
Update posted on Sep 25, 2008 - 11:14PM |
Scott M. Turner, who was convicted last month of hurling a neighbor's kitten against a wall and killing it, entered an Alford plea Thursday in Ramsey County District Court after he was accused of threatening that neighbor.
The plea means the defendant maintains his innocence but concedes there is enough evidence to convict him.
According to the charges, Turner allegedly threatened the kitten's owner before he went on trial for felony animal cruelty, telling her, "You better not show up for court ... if you know what's good for you."
The 29-year-old St. Paul man threw the kitten during an argument with his girlfriend, who apparently borrowed the kitten and didn't want to return it.
Turner will be sentenced on the animal cruelty conviction by District Judge Margaret (Peg) Marrinan on Sept. 24.
He will be sentenced on the terroristic threats charge by District Judge Rosanne Nathanson on Oct. 30. He is expected to get a stayed sentence and five years' probation. | Source: Star-Tribune - Sept 11, 2008
Update posted on Sep 11, 2008 - 10:05PM |
A Ramsey County jury delivered a verdict of guilty today against a man accused of throwing a kitten against a wall during an argument with his pregnant girlfriend.
Scott Michael Turner, 29, showed no reaction when Judge Margaret Marrinan read the verdict of guilty to felony animal cruelty.
The kitten, named Nilla, was severely injured and had to be euthanized after the May 12 incident at 1034 Suburban Ave in St. Paul.
Turner's girlfriend, Jennifer DuPaul, told the jury on Wednesday that she was yelling at him that night because he wanted to bring the cat back to its owner, who lived across the hall, and she wanted to continue playing with it.
She went into the kitchen as he was headed to the door, then she heard a thud. When she went back to the living room she saw Nilla lying on the floor, twitching, with blood coming out of her mouth.
Turner later told DuPaul that he was carrying the kitten on his shoulder, it fell off, and he accidentally stepped on it, she said.
But according to the cat's owner, Lisa Lewis, Turner admitted that he had thrown the cat because DuPaul was "paying more attention to the cat than she was to him."
DuPaul testified that immediately after the incident she asked him whether he would do something like that to their child. He said yes, he might. She told the jury she believed his answer was sarcastic.
"I know he's not a mean person and he would never hurt anybody like that -- especially a baby or a kitten," she said.
Turner did not testify in his own defense.
In her closing argument, defense attorney Corey Sherman said no one else actually saw Turner deliberately hurt the cat.
But prosecutor John Conard said it was clear what had happened.
"There's no dispute that nobody else was in that room. It's just Mr. Turner in that room," Conard said.
Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 24.
Turner has since been charged with another crime. According to police, he threatened Lewis, the cat's owner, before the trial was to begin, saying, "You better not show up for court tomorrow if you know what's good for you. The same thing that happened to your cat can happen to you."
His next appearance in that case is scheduled for Aug. 18. | Source: Twincities.Com - Aug 8, 2008
Update posted on Aug 7, 2008 - 8:17PM |
A man who goes on trial this afternoon on charges of throwing a neighbor's cat against the wall has now been charged with another crime: threatening the cat's owner.
Scott Michael Turner, 29, of St. Paul, encountered the cat's owner July 27 in the laundry room of the building in the 1000 block of Suburban Avenue where they both lived, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday in Ramsey County District Court.
The complaint gives this version of events:
Turner was due to appear in court the following day on the cruelty to animals charge. He told the victim, "You better not show up for court tomorrow if you know what's good for you. The same thing that happened to your cat can happen to you."
The woman told police that Turner's face was red and his fists were clenched as he made the threat, which greatly frightened her. She said she was looking for a new place to live as a result.
He was charged with terroristic threats and tampering with a witness.
The animal cruelty charge stemmed from a May 12 incident. His pregnant girlfriend had been playing with the neighbor's cat, Nilla, in the apartment she shared with Turner when he became angry with her and threw the cat against the wall.
The cat suffered severe bleeding in its head and chest and had to be put to sleep. | Source: Twincities.Com - Aug 6, 2008
Update posted on Aug 6, 2008 - 10:21PM |
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