CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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Case #1490 Rating: 3.3 out of 5
Hoarding - dead cockatoos, parrots, pythons
Leominster, MA (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Jan 15, 2003
County: Worcester
Disposition: Convicted
Defendants/Suspects:
» Peter Gilbert
» Carol Gilbert
Five months after state and local officials walked into a once-stately Victorian home to find dead cockatoos, parrots, pythons and piles of debris and animal feces, the owners of the condemned house at 291 Merriam Ave. have been sentenced to one year of supervised probation on cruelty to animals charges.
"The circumstances of the case were quite frankly horrific," said District Court Judge John Curran on Monday as he announced the sentence for the Leominster couple, whose 12-year-old son had to be removed from the animal-filled house in January.
Peter Gilbert, 47, a computer analyst, and Carol Gilbert, 48, a former employee of a local pet store, both were charged with three counts of cruelty to animals.
The cases against the couple were filed without a finding, which means the charges will not be a part of their permanent record as long as they don't violate the terms of their probation.
In addition to placing them on probation, Curran ordered them to perform community service, undergo counseling and have no contact with animals.
Peter Gilbert, who earned a master's degree at the University of Illinois and worked for 13 years at the Digital Corp. before getting laid off in 1992, was described by his attorney, Joseph Moriarty, as having mental health problems.
"Mr. Gilbert's role in this entire situation was passive in nature, in that he did nothing to prevent what happened," said Assistant District Attorney John Kennedy.
Although Carol Gilbert was not living in the house at the time, Kennedy said she was still the owner and had been residing at the house sometime when the neglect took place.
Curran ruled the couple treated the animals in a "cruel and inappropriate manner" by causing them to die due to neglect.
"There doesn't have to be intent to abuse animals," said Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Sgt. Peter Oberton outside the courtroom. "Just the fact the animals were abused. From them failing to do things, they were guilty of violating the law."
Both suspects admitted to sufficient facts so they could be found guilty but placed by the judge on probation, said Carol Gilbert's court-appointed attorney Darla Mondou.
"He certainly regrets that it came to this," Moriarty said of Peter Gilbert's reaction to the charges.
On Jan. 15, investigators from the Health Department, the Leominster Police Department, the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and the Department of Social Services all entered the home to remove the 12-year-old son, who was living inside with his father.
Also in the building were a collection of exotic animals, some dead, but some alive and still living in various parts of the three-story house.
When state and local authorities arrived, they found reptile and bird corpses and dead snakes stuffed in containers in "jelly-like" states, according to Kennedy.
The house was found by the Health Department to be "unfit for human habitation" and was later condemned. The child was taken away from his parents and is now living in Illinois, attorneys said. References |
