Dog shot
Plain, WA (US)

Incident Date: Sunday, Jan 9, 2011
County: Chelan

Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted

Defendant/Suspect: James J. Walker

A Plain man entered an Alford plea Wednesday in Chelan County Superior Court to a charge of shooting a neighbor's dog, and was sentenced to 30 days on a county work crew.

James J. Walker, 36, pleaded guilty to killing a pet animal, a gross misdemeanor.

Walker phoned RiverCom Jan. 9 to report shooting a dog that had trespassed into his yard in the 18000 block of River Road in Plain. He said the dog was not behaving aggressively when he shot it, according to the animal control incident report.

He said the black Labrador, Cinder, had bitten his daughter in 2008 when she was 3 years old. The biting report was investigated and the dog was not found to be aggressive, the animal control report stated.

However, letters to the court from friends and relatives of Walker said his daughter suffered a facial scar as a result.

They also said the dog barked constantly, strayed from its yard and once attacked Walker's dog, despite pleas to the owners to control it.

He was initially charged with animal cruelty, a felony carrying a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

References

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