Dog beaten with golf club, resulting in death
Bellevue, NE (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Oct 21, 2008
County: Sarpy
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Carson Smith, Sr.
Case Updates: 2 update(s) available
A Bellevue man used a golf club to beat his rat terrier because it wouldn't stop barking. The dog's injuries were so severe that it was euthanized.
Carson Smith Sr., 41, of 1416 St. Joachin Court, was ticketed Sunday night by the Nebraska Humane Society on suspicion of animal cruelty.
Smith was cited on suspicion of a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine. Mark Langan of the Humane Society said he forwarded a report of the incident to the Sarpy County Attorney's Office, which will decide whether to upgrade the charge to a felony punishable by up to five years in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Langan said Smith got angry when his dog, Sam, wouldn't stop barking. Smith struck the dog on the head with a golf club, causing massive skull and brain injuries. The family rushed Sam to a veterinarian's office. The dog had to be euthanized at 3:30 p.m.
Langan said Smith was with the family at the veterinarian's office and was remorseful about the incident.
Langan encouraged pet owners to call the Humane Society's behavior hot line (444-7800, ext. 221) if they become frustrated with their dogs.
"People can get help from professionals about behavioral issues like barking, showing aggression or house training," Langan said. "We have great success. He (Carson) chose the wrong alternative and was criminally and morally wrong."
Case UpdatesA Bellevue man faces up to a year in prison and a one-thousand dollar fine for killing his dog with a golf club. Carson Smith entered a plea of no contest Friday to a misdemeanor charge of cruelty to animals.
Smith owned a rat terrier. When the dog would not stop barking Smith struck it with a golf club. The dog was later euthanized.
"He didn't take the club and do a fairway swing, he took the club and bopped him on the head," Smith's attorney James Martin Davis said. "I don't think he recognized he was going to hit him so hard. He never met to kill the animal he just meant to shut it up."
"I didn't mean to kill my dog," Smith said. "You know we loved the dog, you know. We took it to the vet, it was an unfortunate incident"
"I think certainly the injury the severe injury and the death of that animal was an unintended consequence of what he did," Davis said.
The Nebraska Humane Society's Pam Wiese says it was an unfortunate incident and there are better ways to keep your dog from barking.
"There are always ways to deal with dog misbehavior without using violence…always," she said.
Wiese recommends citronella bark collars. They are not shock collars and can help train an animal without harming it.
The collars create a diversion for dogs.
"They go oh and step back because they got sprayed in the face with citronella," Wiese said.
Wiese adds that owners need to keep their cool when animals are acting up.
"Think for two seconds before you do it or take a deep breath before you do it," she said. "You know what he is doing? He is trying to tell me something and I'm not interpreting it correctly and I need to figure out why he's acting this way and correct that instead of just whacking him every time he does the behavior."
Cruelty to animals is more common than we may want to think.
Nebraska Humane Society Animal Control Officer Kristie Biodroski sees a wide range of care for pets.
"You always feel really bad when you go into a situation and see animals suffering," Biodroski said.
Each day she responds to concerns of animal cruelty
"A lot of times it's not feeding them properly, proper vet care, dogs are under weight, they are suffering from parasites," she said.
Sometimes it's owners neglecting their animals.
"We see a lot of ingrown collars. People get puppies, get collars and it grows, they never check the collar and then the collar actually starts to grow into the neck," she said.
Sometimes injury comes from seemingly innocent incidents.
"We have seen injuries from people who accidentally you know push the dog off the bed and they animal have ends up with broken legs," Biodroski said.
And if one does get angry and decide to take it out on an animal the effects can be long term.
A dog named Baxter suffered serious head injuries three years ago. While cared for now. The damage inflicted is permanent.
Baxter walks almost sideways and will for the rest of his life.
"Animals are helpless, they depend on us for their well being and it's our responsibility to make sure we take that seriously," Biodroski said.
Some pets like to play hard but it's always important to remember they can be fragile.
"Some people think oh, they're animals, they don't come out of the backyard," Biodroski said. "They kind of forget about about them sometimes and they suffer mentally and physically."
It's a lesson Carson Smith found out the hard way.
Smith is scheduled for sentencing March 5th at 9 a.m. in Sarpy County Court. Smith faces up to a year in prison and a one-thousand dollar fine for killing the dog. | Source: WOWT - Jan 16, 2009
Update posted on Jan 16, 2009 - 6:05PM |
A Bellevue man who struck his rat terrier with a golf club and killed him said today that he is "very sorry."
"I never meant to kill the dog," said Carson Smith Sr., 41. "I cared for the dog. He was my buddy."
Smith was in Sarpy County Court for a misdemeanor animal cruelty charge in connection with the Sept. 21 incident that led to the dog's death.
James Martin Davis, Smith's attorney, asked for a continuance so he could look into how the charge could affect Smith's military status. Smith, an Air Force flight chief, has been in the service for 22 years.
If found guilty, Smith could spend up to a year in jail.
Mark Langan of the Nebraska Humane Society said, "Our position is that this guy needs to sit in jail for a while and think about his actions. .¤.¤. This is one of the most violent animal cruelty cases I've seen."
Langan said Smith got angry when his dog, Sam, wouldn't stop barking. The family rushed Sam to a veterinarian's office, where the dog had to be euthanized.
Smith was not charged with a felony because he hit the dog only once, Langan said. | Source: Omaha World Herald - Dec 10, 2008
Update posted on Dec 11, 2008 - 2:15AM |
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