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Case #1532 Rating: 3.4 out of 5
Puppy beaten with golf club, put in plastic bag
Capitola, CA (US)Incident Date: Sunday, Jun 10, 2001
County: Santa Cruz
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Steven David Jackson
Case Updates: 4 update(s) available
The trial of a man accused of killing a puppy with a golf club was postponed again, nearly two years after the incident occurred in a mobile home park near Capitola.
Steven David Jackson, 38, is accused of "cruelly causing an animal to be killed," a crime that carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison. Jackson now lives in Texas.
On June 10, 2001, he was living at the Pine Knolls Motor Home Park on Capitola Road when, according to authorities, a Pomeranian puppy named Chiquilin began barking at Jackson's children. He silenced the puppy with two swings of a Big Bertha metal golf driver, authorities allege.
Then he put the puppy in a plastic food storage container and took it, still alive, to the park's manager, saying it had been hit by a car.
Chiquilin was put to sleep by a veterinarian. After an animal control officer investigated, Jackson was mailed a request to appear in court.
At that point Bob Lee, now the Santa Cruz County district attorney but then an assistant district attorney, asked the court to put Jackson in jail on the grounds that his temper made him a risk. The court declined to do so.
But Jackson was jailed briefly when further charges of witness intimidation were filed against him, stemming from what Lee said were threats made against the dog's owners. He posted $10,000 bail on that charge.
In November 2001, Jackson pleaded not guilty to both charges.
His defense attorney, Arthur Dudley, blamed a scheduling conflict for the latest postponement. The trial, scheduled for Thursday in Santa Cruz Superior Court, has been reset for Sept. 29.
At Jackson's November 2001 arraignment, Dudley said the man might have injured the dog "inadvertently."
Case UpdatesJackson was convicted Feb. 2 of animal cruelty and attempted witness intimidation. On Monday, Judge Art Danner ordered Jackson to surrender April 27 to start his jail term. He also was sentenced to three years of probation, and ordered to pay roughly $2,000 in restitution and perform 500 hours of community service.
Danner also ordered Jackson to get anger-management counseling. He made it clear that Jackson has a three-year suspended prison sentence waiting if he misbehaves while on probation. He also told Jackson he didn't believe his story and that he should face what he did.
Read more: Santa Cruz Sentinel | | Update posted on Apr 14, 2004 - 8:20AM |
The Santa Cruz Sentinel (2/3) has reported that after a two and a half year delay, Steven David Jackson has been tried and convicted of felony animal cruelty for beating to death his neighbors' eight-pound Pomeranian puppy named Chiquilin. Mr. Jackson reportedly used a golf club to bludgeon Chiquilin, hitting her hard enough to fracture the dog's skull and cause her eye to pop out of its socket. The evidence brought up at trial indicated that Mr. Jackson chased the puppy down and clubbed her from behind. The evidence also indicated that, after Chiquilin's guardians reported the killing to the local SPCA, Jackson harassed them with verbal threats and racial epithets.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Mr. Jackson will be sentenced on March 29, 2004. Write to the judge and urge him to give Mr. Jackson significant jail time, mandated psychological counseling, and a ban on pet ownership.
The Honorable Arthur Danner, III
Judge of the Superior Court, Santa Cruz County
701 Ocean St., Room 120
Santa Cruz, CA 95060 | | Update posted on Mar 10, 2004 - 5:02PM |
The trial ended Monday (Feb 02) with guilty verdicts against Jackson. The judge will sentence Jackson on March 29, 2004. He could receive a sentence of anywhere from probation, up to 3 years and 8 months in prison. It is up to the judge.
The Judge is:
Hon. Arthur Danner, III,
Judge of the Superior Court, Santa Cruz County,
701 Ocean St, Rm. 120,
Santa Cruz, CA
95060 | | Update posted on Feb 26, 2004 - 5:55AM |
Despite her fear of her former neighbor, the owner of a Pomeranian puppy killed by the golf club-wielding man testified against him Tuesday as prosecutors wound down their case against Steven David Jackson.
Jackson, 37, is facing animal-cruelty and attempted witness intimidation charges for crushing the 4-month-old puppy's skull with a golf club in the street near his former mobile home at Pine Knolls Mobile Manor in June 2001.
The trial started Thursday and is being heard by Judge Art Danner after Jackson waived his right to a jury. Prosecutor Gordon Isen said he expects it to conclude this week. | | Update posted on Jan 28, 2004 - 9:14AM |
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