Puppy's tail cut off with scissors
Bennington, VT (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Jul 8, 2008
County: Bennington
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Jerry Crandall
A Main Street teenager was arraigned on Wednesday after police said he cut off the tail of a pit-bull puppy with a pair of scissors hours after it was born. That puppy and another one had died of dehydration and malnourishment while in the teenager's care.
Jerry Crandall, 19, of Bennington, pleaded not guilty in Bennington District Court on Wednesday to three charges of animal cruelty through deprivation, one charge of animal cruelty through torture, three counts of petty larceny of items worth less than $900 and one count of resisting arrest. All of the charges are misdemeanors.
Bennington Police Officer Anthony Silvestro said in an affidavit that Amber Dufresne, 16, provided a written statement on July 28 that said Crandall had taken three puppies from a litter of 12 birthed by a pit bull Dufresne owned on July 8 in Crandall's home.
About two hours after the puppies were born, Dufresne wrote, Crandall took one dog off and returned it with its tail missing.
"I did not see him cut the tail off but he brought the puppy out and blood was all over it and I could see the bone. He brought me the other part of the tail. He put it in the (freezer)," Dufresne wrote.
Dufresne said she believed Crandall used a pair of scissors with an orange plastic handle.
About a week and a half after the puppies were born, Dufresne told police, she and Crandall argued and she decided to take her pit bull and all the puppies.
According to Dufresne, Crandall took three of the puppies and refused to return them. She said in her statement that Crandall threatened to pour gasoline on the puppies and kill them and threatened to cut the throat of the mother pit bull.
Dufresne told Silvestro she had made a report to the Bennington Police Department on July 19, but she had come back because she was worried about the puppies' health. She said she believed Crandall had given away one of the puppies, but it had died.
According to Dufresne, each puppy was worth about $100 to $200.
Silvestro said he spoke to Crandall on July 28 about the puppies. According to the affidavit, Crandall said he took the puppies when he did because he thought Dufresne would not give them to him later.
The puppies looked small and thin, Silvestro said, and he took photos of both. One showed a "yellowish crust" around the tail area, according to the affidavit.
On July 29, Silvestro spoke to veterinarian Dr. Anna Worth, of West Mountain Animal Hospital in Bennington. Silvestro said Worth told him the yellowish crust could indicate an infection.
Worth also told Silvestro that taking the puppies from their mother so soon could be dangerous and may explain the puppies' size and weight.
After receiving new information from Dufresne, Silvestro contacted veterinarian Dr. Peter Geannelis of Mount Anthony Veterinary Hospital on Aug. 5. Geannelis said both puppies had been malnourished and dehydrated when they died.
Silvestro said he executed a search warrant at Crandall's home later that day and found a pair of scissors with an orange plastic handle and the puppy's tail.
According to Silvestro, Crandall came home after police arrived there and Silvestro told him he was being arrested. Crandall would not put his hands behind his back as ordered by police and three officers needed to restrain him.
Crandall does not have a criminal history in Vermont.
On Wednesday, Crandall was released without bail but ordered not to possess any animals.
If convicted of the charges against him, Crandall could be sentenced to up to eight years in prison. References |
