CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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Case #2358 Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Hoarding - 9 cats seized
Norton Shores, MI (US)Incident Date: Sunday, Nov 30, 2003
County: Muskegon
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Linda Williamson
Linda Williamson, of Norton Shores, WI, had been charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty in December 2003 after abandoning her cats for months in her home without food, water or heat. County animal control officers had rescued nine cats from Williamson's home, and a judge in February ordered the home to be demolished due to its "unsafe" condition.
Williamson plead guilty May 11, 2004.
Muskegon County 60th District Judge Andrew Wierengo III arraigned Williamson on May 13 and fined her $75 in court costs and fines, according to court records. The maximum penalty for the misdemeanor charge is 90 days in jail.
Animal control officers said in December that the home was covered in garbage, cat urine and feces. The garage is the only part of the home still standing.
Williamson said at the time that her 19-year-old son, John -- who moved out of the home in November -- was responsible for feeding the cats when she left for Florida to pursue work.
In the meantime, Kris Brantner, a neighbor, witnessed cats clawing at the window in December and called police. The cats, malnourished, sick, and in some cases, missing hair, were rescued weeks later. Officials from the animal shelter where the cats were being treated said the cats had resorted to eating paper toward the end of the ordeal.
Brantner stated that in her opinion, William's punishment was not harsh enough.
"I don't think it's right, not for the abuse that those animals went through. I don't think it was a stiff enough penalty," she said.
Brantner had also contacted the Norton Shores City Council earlier last year, prior to the cat abandonment, complaining that the cats were roaming freely in the neighborhood, killing wildlife and defecating in neighbors' yards.
The city council is in the process of drafting an ordinance to limit the number of cats a resident can legally own.
References« MI State Animal Cruelty Map
« More cases in Muskegon County, MI
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