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Dismembered cats found in closet, 1 starving
Palm Bay, FL (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Dec 9, 2010
County: Brevard
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Alleged
Alleged: Suzanne Lanette Fountain
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
Authorities said they have arrested a Palm Bay woman in connection with dead cats found in her home.
On Monday, Dec. 9, a Palm Bay police officer was sent to 726 Corinne Ave. to assist Animal Services on a report of a barking dog abandoned in a vacant residence.
Inside the vacant home, the officer discovered the animal was actually a domestic cat locked inside a barricaded closet, police said. The closet door was barricaded with a toolbox containing heavy tools.
The animal was in distress, flea infested and near death. Upon closer inspection inside the closet, police said he found five additional cats that were dead. Four of these deceased cats were dismembered as if they had been partially eaten. The fifth deceased cat consisted only of a skull, indicating it had been consumed.
Authorities identified the homeowner and owner of the cats as Suzanne Fountain. Fountain was discovered to be residing at a residence in Melbourne.
A warrant was issued by a local judge and bond was issued in the amount of $501,000, police said.
The specific charges consisted of five counts of cruelty to an animal of $100,000 each and one count of abandonment to die with a bond amount of $1,000. Once the warrant was issued, Fountain was subsequently arrested by the Palm Bay Police Department at her parent's residence in Palm Bay.
Case UpdatesHannah-Belle, a 2-year-old silver tabby who nearly starved while barricaded for weeks inside a closet in a Palm Bay home, will soon available for adoption.
On Dec. 9, Brevard County animal enforcement and Palm Bay police officers discovered a ghastly scene: Hannah-Belle and the partially cannibalized remains of five dead cats, locked inside a bedroom closet in Suzanne L. Fountain's abandoned rental house.
Fountain, 30, faces charges of five counts of cruelty to animals and one count of abandonment to die. She remains incarcerated at the Brevard County Jail Complex on $501,000 bond.
Inside the jail, Fountain signed a civil-settlement agreement surrendering possession of Hannah-Belle to county authorities, Assistant County Attorney Morris Richardson said.
"(Hannah-Belle) is very healthy. She's fully recovered from the ordeal," said Ralph Lombard, the president of
Sickly and emaciated, ridden with fleas, Hannah-Belle was taken to Palm Bay Animal Clinic after officers found her in the closet. She received a blood transfusion and recuperated for weeks under the care of a Palm Bay "foster mom," Lombard said.
One of the dead cats inside the closet was reduced to a skull, police said. The closet door was barricaded shut with a red toolbox, court records show, and the decomposing cats had likely died one to two weeks before Hannah-Belle was rescued.
Richardson said Fountain's civil settlement "in no way affects or resolves" her pending criminal animal-cruelty case. She was scheduled to attend an arraignment today before Judge James Earp, but it was canceled. An early-resolution hearing is scheduled on Jan. 27.
Fountain can no longer own pets or live in a home with animals, according to the terms of the settlement.
"Unfortunately, I think this was the best result," said Michael McFarland, animal services and enforcement director. "The fact is, this woman obviously did not know or understand how to properly care for an animal -- or understand the torture she put those animals through." | Source: floridatoday.com - Jan 20, 2011
Update posted on Jan 20, 2011 - 10:41PM |
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