Dogs starved, one found dead, child burned
Statesville, NC (US)

Incident Date: Tuesday, Mar 17, 2009
County: Iredell

Charges: Misdemeanor, Felony CTA
Disposition: Alleged

Alleged: Jennifer Lytton

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

A Statesville woman faces both assault and animal cruelty charges.

Investigators say her alleged victims were her 5-year-old daughter and three of her dogs.

Jennifer Lytton of Statesville faces one misdemeanor count of assault on a child under 12, one felony count of cruelty to animals, and two misdemeanor counts of instigating cruelty to animals.

Deputies say Lytton's 5-year-old daughter told a teacher at her school -- Celeste Henkel Elementary in Statesville -- that her mother put out a cigarette on her nose.

"It was one of those deals when you saw it, you knew what you were looking at," said Det. Sgt. Bill Hamby of the Iredell County Sheriff's Office. "Circular thing at the tip of her nose, it's hard to replicate that kind of injury."

Hamby said Lytton pointed the finger at someone else.

"The DSS worker said they had asked the mom what had happened, and she had said that was an injury that the DSS worker had put on the child, that she scratched her nose with a ring the week before," said Hamby.

When deputies went to Lytton's home to investigate the allegations, they say they made another discovery -- a dog skeleton and two malnourished pit bulls in the back yard.

Hamby said there's often a connection between animal and human abuse cases.

"It's almost to the point where if you can do that to an animal, you may be able to do that to an adult," said Hamby. "You kind of dehumanize the adult, bringing him down to the animal's level."

Lytton declined to comment about the charges.

Detectives say Lytton has a record of assault charges but nothing against her children.

Detectives say the 5-year-old is now living with a relative and doing well. The dogs are now at Iredell County Animal Services.

Case Updates

References

• « NC State Animal Cruelty Map
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