Dog thrown off bridge into river
Louisville, KY (US)Incident Date: Sunday, Jul 26, 2009
County: Jefferson
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Dismissed
Person of Interest: Damon Bledsoe
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
The man accused of throwing a dog off the Clark Memorial Bridge appeared before a judge Wednesday and was not happy about being there.
On July 26, witnesses called 911 to report that a man threw a dog off the bridge into the Ohio River. Louisville firefighters rescued the dog with the help of a University of Louisville student, who then adopted the dog.
39-year-old Damon Bledsoe was arrested on Tuesday [Sept 15, 2009] and charged with animal cruelty. Wednesday [Sept 16, 2009] morning, Bledsoe went before a judge who kept the bond at $10,000. Bledsoe didn't like that very much, said he didn't do anything and swore at Jefferson District Court Judge Katie King.
Bledsoe has a lengthy criminal history, but it does not include prior animal abuse charges. His arrest warrant reads that on July 26, Bledsoe threw a dog off the Clark Memorial Bridge and then told witnesses he was going to do the same with their kittens.
Some at Joe's Crab Shack saw the dog being tossed into the river. Waitress Kelsey Westbrook ran down to help and called the dog to safety with the help of Louisville firefighters.
"She knew my voice and that's what kind of made us have a connection. When she got out of the water, she started licking me like crazy," said Westbrook.
From that moment on, the two were inseparable. Westbrook named the dog, who ended up being fine after the fall, Sunny.
"She feel anxious about me leaving because her previous owner threw her to her death," Westbrook said. "I would be anxious about someone leaving me too if that happened."
Bledsoe is charged with a misdemeanor and cannot get more than a year behind bars or a fine over $500.
"You know if someone had thrown a child off the bridge we would never see that person again. Animals don't have a voice just like a baby doesn't. We have to speak for them and stand up for them," Westbrook said.
Case UpdatesHere's one you haven't heard about a new bridge being built in Louisville.
It starts on a summer day on the Clark Memorial Bridge, when a puppy was thrown off and into the Ohio River below.
Kelsey Westbrook, a server at Joe's Crab Shack, was among the many witnesses who saw the dog's rescue by nearby firefighters.
The dog not only survived the 80-foot fall, but found a new home with Westbrook, a University of Louisville student who was working at the restaurant off River Road that day. Westbrook adopted the pit bull and named her Sunny -- practically destined to become an instant local celebrity.
Not quite a year later, Westbrook, now 22 and still a full-time student and full-time server, is launching Saving Sunny Inc., a nonprofit animal welfare organization to which Sunny, now almost 2, is lending her celebrity:
Their motto: "Bridging the gap for abused animals."
Westbrook said Kentucky's punishment for animal cruelty is regarded as among the most lenient in the country.
The state has a reputation among animal rights activists that "If you want to hurt an animal, then you should come to Kentucky," she said.
To change that image, Saving Sunny has three missions: enable more police officer training in investigating animal cruelty, build a foster care network for abused animals, and educate people on animal care and reporting abuse.
A launch party and fundraiser for the nonprofit will be held on Sunday at Stevie Ray's Blues Bar, 230 E. Main St., from 4 p.m. to midnight with live blues and jazz music and raffles.
The organization's top priority is raising funds for specialized police officer training, with hopes of eventually funding an animal cruelty division at the Louisville Metro Police Department. While Metro Animal Services' animal control officers deal with daily reports of abuse, police often get involved in the most severe cases, said Metro Police Officer Lisa Nagle, who has become the department's go-to person for such cases since joining the force in January 2008.
Another goal is to set up a foster care network to help both animal and human victims of abuse, and drawing attention to what likely is an underreported factor in cases of domestic violence: pets. Victims of domestic abuse are sometimes reluctant to leave their pets behind, fearing their abuser will harm or kill the animals in retaliation, both Nagle and Westbrook said. Offering a safe place for those pets to stay could help get some people out of abusive situations.
Abused animals, such as fighting dogs, often end up in custody of Metro Animal Services under quarantine and eventually are put down, Westbrook said. Those dogs could instead go into foster care, but those volunteers will need training as well, she said, and Saving Sunny will ensure they receive it.
Like most animal welfare groups, Saving Sunny also is taking on the mission of educating as many people as possible -- particularly in gathering places such as schools and churches -- about how to properly take care of animals and how to report animal cruelty to authorities.
Since they met on July 26, 2009, Westbrook and Sunny have both been through some changes.
Westbrook changed her college major in January from English to liberal studies in animal welfare, combining classes in creative writing, public relations and animal biology. She plans to graduate in December and pursue a career in nonprofit work.
After almost losing her apartment in the wake of all the publicity -- since pit bulls are considered a vicious breed, they often are banned at rental properties -- a new landlord gave them a reprieve. Soon, she plans to move to a new home with a yard for Sunny, her other dog, Nala, and her own foster dog, Miles.
Westbrook and a friend found Miles wandering in Old Louisville covered in fleas and ticks and suffering bad cases of parasites and mange. After receiving proper veterinary care, including neutering and microchipping, and staying in a loving home, Miles -- who loves playing with Sunny and Nala and curling up with people -- is ready to be permanently adopted, she said.
A German shepherd, Nala was abused as a puppy and has "gotten a little more confident," with Sunny around, Westbrook said, "which is a cool transition to see. ... They're best friends."
Meanwhile, Sunny is working on her Canine Good Citizen certification at the Kentucky Humane Society and just finished behavior training. She's healthy and "still has puppy energy," Westbrook said, and has "filled out to "about 65 pounds of solid muscle," and is quite a ham, well aware of her celebrity status.
"She's really resilient," Westbrook said.
They've been walking by the river, and Sunny doesn't seem to have any anxiety there.
"I always wonder if she remembers it, but I doubt she does," Westbrook said.
A man was arrested in September for allegedly throwing Sunny off the bridge and was charged with second-degree animal cruelty, but he was cleared after two continuances in February due to a lack of evidence, according to the Jefferson County Attorney's office.
"I think I would like people to know that it was only a misdemeanor and that nothing really happened," Westbrook said. "It would have been a felony if she had died from the fall."
There are limited felony charges for animal cruelty cases, said Nagle, who was involved in the investigation of Sunny's case and is serving as an advisor to the board of Saving Sunny.
"The way the law works in Kentucky, you have animal cruelty first (degree), which is dog fighting and a felony," said Nagle. The torture of a cat or dog is a misdemeanor, Nagle said, unless it is a third offense or the animal dies or sustains serious physical injury -- then it becomes a felony.
Second-degree animal cruelty is a misdemeanor and is the charge for a range of crimes, from neglect, like not providing food and water and veterinary care, to intentionally inflicting pain or suffering, according to Nagle.
"I've seen some extreme cases," said Nagle.
She hopes support from Saving Sunny might help Metro Police, working closely with Metro Animal Services, better investigate and prosecute as many animal abuse and cruelty cases as possible.
Nagle believes officers could benefit from specialized training, particularly in the area of dog fighting, where investigations operate much like narcotics investigations, with the added element of the dogs -- victims, but victims trained and often bred to be violent and aggressive.
Nagle said she wants the public to know that "dog fighting is happening in Louisville," and police need the public's help in alerting officers to where the activity is taking place.
"All kinds of criminal activity" frequently accompany a dog-fighting ring, of which she said there are an estimated 100,000 to 140,000 in the U.S.
Pit bulls are the "breed of choice" now, Nagle said, because they have a high pain tolerance and an "undying desire to please their owner."
"All they want is love and companionship," she said.
Signs of dog fighting or someone's involvement in it, Nagle said, are more than a couple of dogs in a back yard, dogs on heavy chains or housed in cheap blue barrels. Another warning sign is seeing someone with a lot of different dogs -- with one dog one week and a different dog the next week.
"It boils down to the owner," she said. "You can take any dog and make it mean." | Source: courier-journal.com - Jun 4, 2010
Update posted on Jun 11, 2010 - 3:21PM |
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