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Case #15857 Rating: 1.0 out of 5
Puppy mill - 20 dogs seized from breeder
Toledo, WA (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Oct 8, 2009
County: Lewis
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Case Images: 3 files available
Defendant/Suspect: Theresa Hahn
Case Updates: 5 update(s) available
Lewis County Sheriff's Office seized 20 dogs found living in deplorable conditions in Toledo.
The Sheriff's Office says Theresa Hahn, 26, had been breeding dogs on the property. Nearly 160 dogs were on the property when investigators arrived.
The seized dogs all appeared to be sick and in need of veterinarian care. They were taken to the Lewis County Animal Shelter.
Most of the dogs on the property were Pomeranians, but there were other breeds, such as Labradors and German Shepherds.
Hahn told investigators the dogs on her property were used for breeding, which is her sole source of income.
Hahn will be referred to the Lewis County Prosecutors Office for 20 counts of second degree animal cruelty.
Case UpdatesA Toledo dog breeder was found guilty Wednesday in Lewis County District Court on 10 misdemeanor counts of second-degree animal cruelty.
Judge R.W. Buzzard sentenced Theresa Hahn, 27, to 100 days in jail, but converted 50 of those days to 400 hours of community service. If Hahn fails to fulfill that agreement within two years, she'll be remanded to jail and serve another 50 days. Hahn began serving her sentence Wednesday.
Hahn sobbed in court when Buzzard prohibited her from dog ownership and care for the rest of her life.
"You may not care for a dog in any shape or form," Buzzard said.
Buzzard also fined Hahn $2,000 - $200 for each count of animal cruelty and ordered her to reimburse the Lewis County Animal Shelter for expenses spent on caring for 20 of her dogs. The dogs were found emaciated and parasite-ridden on October 2009. One of them died.
Animal shelter manager Amy Hanson said $3,700 alone was spent in providing medical attention to the dogs. Hanson and prosecutors will have 60 days to calculate the total cost of the animal shelter's expenses, including food and hours spent providing care, before referring the full amount back to court.
Hahn had 157 Pomeranians and Labradors on her property in the 100 block of Rockridge Lane when the Lewis County Sheriff's Office originally responded to a report that Hahn and her family were growing marijuana. Instead of cultivation, deputies witnessed animal cruelty and came back to her property with a warrant.
Six of the dogs seized were adopted from the local shelter. The rest were adopted out of the Oregon Humane Society in Portland.
Hahn originally faced 20 counts of animal cruelty. Prosecutors dropped half the charges when Hahn pleaded guilty to the other half in early September.
Hanson said in court that when she and a code enforcement officer from Public Health and Social Services responded to Hahn's property, dogs were everywhere, even in the bathrooms, feces was spread around, and the dogs were there as a "commodity to be sold for financial gain."
Hahn, a self-proclaimed dog breeder, still advertises dogs for sale at her website
Jerry Hirsch, who lives across the street from the Hahn property, said he has been complaining to the Hahns for years about the state of the property.
"I would like to see removal of all warmblooded creatures from that place," Hirsch said in court. | Source: thenewstribune.com - Dec 9, 2010
Update posted on Dec 9, 2010 - 9:25PM |
A Toledo woman has pleaded guilty to animal cruelty charges nearly a year after 20 dogs were found living in deplorable conditions on her property in Toledo.
Theresa Hahn, 27, pled guilty to 10 counts of Animal Cruelty in the Second Degree.
Hahn was originally charged by for inflicting unnecessary suffering or pain upon the dogs, which were subsequently seized by law enforcement officers during execution of a search warrant of her property.
Nearly 160 dogs were on the property when investigators arrived.
The seized dogs all appeared to be sick and in need of veterinarian care. They were taken to the Lewis County Animal Shelter.
Most of the dogs on the property were Pomeranians, but there were other breeds, such as Labradors and German Shepherds.
Hahn is awaiting sentencing. The State will recommend 60 days in jail, a $2,000 fine and other court costs and assessments. The State will also urge the Court to prohibit Hahn from owning any dogs for at least the next two years in accordance with Washington law. | Source: nwcn.com - Sept 13, 2010
Update posted on Nov 4, 2010 - 8:34PM |
An animal cruelty case against a Toledo-area woman will go forward after a Lewis County judge ruled that evidence from an Oct. 2 search of her property can be presented at trial.
Had District Court Judge R.W. Buzzard ruled otherwise Thursday, the case likely would have been dismissed.
Theresa Hahn, 26, is accused of animal cruelty after Lewis County deputies seized 20 dogs, most of them Pomeranians, after they were found living in inhumane conditions at her property in early October, according to the Lewis County Sheriff's Department.
Hahn's defense attorney Jerry Gray had asked Buzzard to suppress evidence and testimony from a warrantless Oct. 2 search of the home, which included a Lewis County humane officer and three detectives. Gary argued that detectives failed to provide Hahn with so-called Ferrier warnings, meaning Hahn should have been notified of her right to end or limit the search at any time.
Buzzard, however, noted that Hahn had refused previous law enforcement requests to search her property, showing that she knew she did not have to consent to a warrantless search.
"I am finding that Miss Hahn gave her consent, that it was voluntary," Buzzard said at the conclusion of the pre-trial hearing.
On the stand, Lewis County Humane Officer Alishia Hornburg described the Oct. 2 encounter with Hahn at her property 10 miles northeast of Toledo on Rockridge Lane.
She said she asked for sheriff's office personnel to accompany her to the property. She testified she had been focusing on Hahn since complaints of barking dogs and the overwhelming smell of urine and feces started arising early last year.
Hornburg said that on approximately 10 occasions, she was not allowed to a pass a gate at the entrance of Hahn's property. On one occasion, Hahn allowed her to look inside a detached building, but only after a week of notification.
"I thought maybe (Hahn) would take my visits more seriously if I had law enforcement with me," Hornburg said.
Hornburg said that, following several conversations near the gate Oct. 2, Hahn provided her permission for Hornburg and a detective to enter the home, as long as no photographs were taken. The search lasted less than an hour. That search led to the issuance of a search warrant on Oct. 7.
On that day, the sheriff's office, code enforcement and animal control workers swarmed the property and seized more than 20 allegedly sick and malnourished dogs, mostly Pomeranians. The investigation located approximately 157 dogs on the property, but only the visibly ill were taken. | Source: TDN.com - Mar 12, 2010
Update posted on Mar 19, 2010 - 2:06PM |
A Toledo woman charged with 20 counts of second-degree animal cruelty pled not guilty Friday afternoon in Lewis County Superior Court.
Theresa Hahn, 26, was accused of animal cruelty after Lewis County deputies seized 20 dogs, most of them Pomeranians, after they were found living in allegedly inhumane conditions at her property in early October.
Judge R.W. Buzzard released her, without bail, on the condition she would allow a Lewis County Animal Shelter official to inspect her property and the living conditions of the other 100 plus animals on her property located on the 100 block of Rockridge Lane.
Prosecuting attorney Shane O’Rourke asked Buzzard earlier to consider bail to be set at $5,000.
Early last month, Lewis County deputies, accompanied by animal control and animal health officials, found dogs that were being kept in a double-wide modular home that smelled of animal waste. Over 150 dogs were estimated to be on the property.
Workers had to put on breathing apparatuses before entering the residence.
One Pomeranian puppy died an hour after being rescued, and another had its eye removed because of an infection.
Hahn denied the allegations of animal cruelty saying many of the animals were ill and had been rescued. She denied deputies claims that there was fecal matter all over the house.
She moved to Lewis County following a separate investigation into animal cruelty in Clackamas County, Ore., where she once lived.
She said she will fight to get her dogs back from the animal shelter. | Source: The Chronicle - Nov 7, 2009
Update posted on Nov 9, 2009 - 1:56AM |
A Lewis County dog breeder who had 20 animals seized from her property Thursday after allegations of abuse and deplorable conditions is defending herself.
Despite officials finding 157 dogs on her Toledo property, Theresa Hahn said she does not run a puppy mill and takes care of her dogs.
“I am furious. I feel violated. I'm not sleeping," she said.
Investigators said video shows feces and urine inside the home and dogs living in deplorable conditions. Hahn said the police are to blame for that because they let the dogs into her home.
"When we went through the house it was a disaster. They were using rakes to hit my dogs, to corner them," Hahn said.
Officials took 20 of the animals, mostly Pomeranians, because police believed they were in imminent danger. One of the dogs seized, a 3-week-old puppy, died Friday at the vet clinic where he was being treated for dehydration and other problems, said the Lewis County Sheriff's Office.
Vets who have treated the dogs said they showed signs of severe neglect and one of the puppies had to have an eye removed.
Hahn said allegations of abuse and neglect are wrong and that her dogs are well cared for.
"My dogs have open range, they are not kenneled or crated, they’re not stuffed in little tiny pens where they can't walk around. They have plenty of space and adequate attention,” Hahn said.
The Lewis County sheriff is recommending 20 counts of animal cruelty be filed against Hahn for the alleged mistreatment of her animals.
"I didn't think I was doing anything wrong, but maybe I was, I just didn't realize it, but I am willing to work to make it better. I've never intentionally harmed an animal ever in my life," Hahn said.
Officials said they will be going back to Hahn's property next week to check on the remaining dogs in her care.
The prosecutor has not made a decision yet on whether Hahn will face criminal charges in this case. | Source: KIRO-TV - Oct 9, 2009
Update posted on Oct 12, 2009 - 2:50AM |
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