Attorneys/Judges
Judge(s): | Harry J. Jacob III |
Images for this Case
39 animals seized Solon, OH (US)Incident Date: Friday, Aug 13, 2010 County: Cuyahoga
Charges: Misdemeanor Disposition: Alleged Case Images: 3 files available
Alleged: » Steven Friedman » Heidi Friedman
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
The city took three birds, a rabbit and 33 dogs, puppies, cats and guinea pigs from a Wagon Wheel Drive home. All but a parakeet were euthanized.
Steven Friedman, 58, a podiatrist, and his wife, Heidi, 48, who abandoned the animals in their feces-filled home in the 33500 block of Wagon Wheel Drive, are charged with 39 counts of animal cruelty and two counts of child endangering, police said.
According to the police report:
The Friedmans' neighbor called police Friday to say the couple and their three children had gone on vacation Aug. 2, leaving the house closed up and the air conditioner off. Temperatures were close to 90.
Despite the closed windows, police and two animal wardens could smell feces, urine and ammonia, and fleas jumped onto their clothing in the yard. The longtime neighbor said he had never seen the dogs in the yard. Officers looked in the windows and saw dogs sitting on tables.
A sergeant reached the Friedmans by telephone and was given permission to enter the house using the garage door code. Animal Warden Steve Suder entered the house and came back out saying respirators and protective clothing were needed. Solon firefighters brought their hazardous materials gear to the home.
The warden and two officers entered and found the rooms strewn with clothes and dog feces. There was a child's wading pool in the front room that held brown water. They videotaped and photographed the scene.
"Every room in the house from the second-floor bedrooms to the basement had animal feces on the floor and on the furniture," Patrolman Brad Lender wrote. "The second-floor master bedroom had a few inches of dog feces packed down on the floor."
City Building Department official Charlie Boshane declared the house unsanitary and uninhabitable. He placed a "No Occupancy" sign on it. Police contacted the county child welfare agency to report the conditions that the Freidman daughters had been living in. They are 20, 16 and 15. A 22-year-old brother had moved out.
Initially, the officers found 23 puppies and dogs, six living cats, two dead cats, two guinea pigs, a rabbit and three birds. The warden said the Friedmans surrendered the animals by phone. Two more dogs were surrendered later.
The city called the Solon Veterinary Clinic on Richmond Road, took all of the animals there and told Dr. Don Bartels to euthanize them because they were abandoned and had fleas, Bartels said today. He said the animals were mixed breeds that had not been groomed. He said one parakeet was spared because the warden had found it a home.
The city said it did not order that the animals be killed, but that Friedman spoke to Bartels and agreed to have them euthanized and pay for it. The city is not being billed for the euthanasias, Assistant Chief Ray Tittl said.
Officers were sent to the house again Sunday afternoon and found that the family had returned during the night. Steven Friedman claimed that Sgt. Dale Bunjevac had given him permission to be in the house. Bunjavac said he had not. The family were told to go to the police station for questioning. They met with the prosecutor and made other living arrangements. Children services was told where the family would be living.
Friedman said the family had gone to Boynton Beach, Fla., to help his mother-in-law after the death of his father-in-law. Records confirm the death.
He said he left open bags of pet food and the baby pool of water for the animals. He also said the family had accumulated too many animals, had Case UpdatesSolon residents Steven and Heidi Friedman can return to their Wagon Wheel Drive home as it was declared "habitable" by the health department in a pre-trial hearing Wednesday in Bedford Municipal Court. But there are conditions to their return.
According to the court's Chief Deputy Clerk John Garmone, the Friedmans cannot have any animals in the home nor any minor children.
But Judge Harry J. Jacob III allowed the Friedmans to visit their daughters who have been living with relatives in Florida. No trial date has been set.
Police allege that last summer, Steven Friedman, 58, a podiatrist, and his wife, Heidi, 48, abandoned three birds, a rabbit and 33 dogs, puppies, cats and guinea pigs in their feces-filled home when they and their three daughters -- ages 20, 15 and 16 -- went out of town on an extended trip to Boynton Beach, Florida.
They also have a 22-year-old son who did not live in the home.
All of the animals except a parakeet had to be euthanized.
Source: wkyc.com - Nov 17, 2010 Update posted on Nov 19, 2010 - 9:25AM |
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