Case Details

Cat deliberatly driven over as it was giving birth
Augusta, ME (US)

Incident Date: Thursday, Feb 26, 2004
County: Kennebec
Local Map: available
Disposition: Convicted

Abuser/Suspect: John W. Witham

Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

Case ID: 2032
Classification: Vehicular
Animal: cat
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A Randolph man accused of deliberately driving his pickup over a cat as it was having kittens was held on $100,000 cash bail after a hearing Monday in Augusta District Court.

John W. Witham, 27, who also has an address in Windsor, was charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, a felony charge, as well as misdemeanor counts of terrorizing, criminal mischief, violating conditions of release and cruelty to animals.

District Attorney Evert Fowle asked for a high bail for Witham, claiming he crushed the cat in order to intimidate a woman he is accused of assaulting.

Fowle said the incident with the cat occurred Thursday outside the woman's home on Washington Street in Augusta. He said a neighbor witnessed the event and cooperated with the investigators.

Witham had been indicted Feb. 4 on charges of unlawful possession of heroin and was out on bail after entering a plea of not guilty. Fowle said Witham was found with a plastic bag of heroin and three bags of marijuana and pills in Randolph on May 12, 2003.

Witham also was charged with domestic assault on Feb. 6, and bail conditions banned him from contact with the alleged victim.

Fowle said, "He was visiting with her and still continuing to have contact with her in violation of the no-contact order of the bail commissioner."

Fowle said the woman's mother called from Gardiner on Thursday to tell her the cat was in labor and to come and get the animal.

Instead, Fowle said, Witham picked up the cat carrier and cat in Gardiner and came back and told the woman to choose between him and the cat. Augusta Police Officer Paul Frye reported that Witham held the cat carrier out of the truck window and said "last chance" before dropping the crate to the ground, backing over it and leaving the scene.

"He killed the cat and the kittens that we believe were in the process of being born," said Fowle.

Witham apparently called the woman twice after the incident, once speaking to Frye, who tried to get Witham to meet him. A second time he called and spoke to the woman who said, "What do you mean? I'm next?"

Frye was still in the kitchen and heard the second call, according to the police report.

Witham was arrested Saturday by Kennebec Sheriff's Deputy Jason Johnson.

Fowle's request for $100,000 cash bail or $250,000 worth of real estate was granted by Judge Rae Ann French.

"This is more than the killing of an innocent animal," Fowle said. "This is in the context of domestic violence and intimidation."

Witham was represented in court Monday by Steven Parker, who argued for a low cash bail. Parker also represents Witham on the heroin charge.

Case Updates

A Randolph man who is the first person in Maine's history to be charged under the new crime of felony animal cruelty will spend the next four years behind bars, a Superior Court judge ruled Thursday morning. A jury in November found John W. Witham, 27, guilty of deliberately driving his pickup truck over a pet carrier containing his girlfriend's cat as it was having kittens in the driveway of their Augusta home last February.

"It's me or the cat," Witham reportedly told Jessica James.

Witham then dropped the cat carrier containing the animal out of the window of the truck and told her "last chance" before backing over the crate, crushing it and killing the pet. The couple had lived together for 10 months.

Somerset-Kennebec District Attorney Evert Fowle said Thursday that Witham sent the state a message about what he was capable of when he deliberately ran over the cat.

The action, said Fowle, was a deliberate attempt to intimidate the girlfriend.

"This is more than the killing of an innocent animal," Fowle said. "This is in the context of domestic violence and intimidation."

Witham's full sentence was five years in jail, all but four years suspended, and four years probation.

Defense attorney Andrews Campbell of Waldoboro said Thursday afternoon that he was appealing the sentence as extreme.

"We feel it is outrageously excessive," Campbell said. "The usual sentence for animal cruelty is 60 days.

"Four years reflects the public hue and cry rather than justice."

At the time of the cat killing, Witham was on bail from a previous domestic assault against the woman and was prohibited from having contact with her. He also had been charged with possession of heroin and at the time of his trial was serving three years in Kennebec County Jail, all but nine months suspended, for the drug conviction.

"We are very pleased with [Justice Joseph Jabar] for this sentence," Fowle said. "We didn't just take the killing of an innocent animal into consideration but also all the medical and scientific studies that tell us that people that kill and torture animals will do so to people."

Witham's attorney maintained throughout his trial that his client accidentally ran over the cat carrier.

Fowle explained that the incident began last February when James' mother called from Gardiner to tell her the cat was in labor and to come and get it. Instead, Witham picked up the cat carrier and cat and returned to Augusta where he told James to choose between him and the cat, Fowle said.

Witham fled the scene and then called James twice, once when an Augusta police officer was at her home. During the second call, James reportedly said, "What do you mean? I'm next?" to Witham.
Source: Bangor Daily News - Dec 3, 2004
Update posted on Dec 3, 2004 - 8:20AM 
A Kennebec County Superior Court jury on Nov 24, 2004 found John W. Witham, 27, guilty of aggravated cruelty to animals, criminal mischief and cruelty to animals. The jury cleared him of a charge of terrorizing Jessica James, his girlfriend at the time.
Source: Associated Press - Nov 25, 2004
Update posted on Dec 1, 2004 - 7:05AM 

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References

Kennebec Journal  
Bangor Daily News  - Dec 3, 2004
Morning Sentinel - Dec 5, 2004

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