Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: Youths tied kittens, beat them, hung them as bait

Youths tied kittens, beat them, hung them as bait
Englewood, TN (US)

Incident Date: Friday, Jun 18, 2004
County: McMinn
Local Map: available
Disposition: Convicted

Abusers/Suspects:
» Name Undisclosed - Dismissed
» Name Undisclosed

Case Updates: 1 update(s) available

Case ID: 2500

Classification: Mutilation/Torture, Beating

Animal: cat

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Felony charges are pending against two juvenile boys, 10 and 14, in an alleged animal cruelty case investigated by Englewood police and sheriff�s deputies, the Tennessee Humane Society and the state Department of Children�s Services.

Englewood Police Sgt. David Greaves said Wednesday the charges stem from a case of abuse involving five kittens whose eyes had just begun to open and a small, mixed-breed dog.

�According to the witnesses, there were five kittens. They tied their rear legs together at the ankles, hit them against a tree and hung them up where the dogs could get them,� said Greaves, who is the Englewood Police Department�s canine officer.

Because of the severity of the abuse and due to the sadisticness and outright torture of the animals, we are pushing for felony charges,� he said.

Larry Eaton, the animal abuse investigator for the local chapter of the Humane Society, assisted in the investigation.

Greaves said a small dog, belonging to one of the boys, has also been abused.

�The older child stated he loved his dog, but then he�d taken a box cutter to his dog just to see what it was like,� Greaves said.

Greaves said the charges will be filed on juvenile petitions in McMinn County Juvenile Court as the investigation comes to a close in the next few days.

Eaton told The DPA earlier in the week that he�d never seen a case of animal abuse as bad as the one being investigated in Englewood.

Eaton said the injuries to the small dog were being treated and the animal is expected to make a full recovery.

The two juveniles will await service of juvenile petitions, according to police.

Greaves said police and officials from DCS were seeking psychological treatment for the two boys.

Case Updates

One of the two boys charged in the June killing of five kittens and the cutting of a dog in Englewood has pleaded guilty to animal cruelty charges.

The case against the younger of the pair was dismissed with prejudice.

McMinn County Juvenile Services Director Larry Rhodes said the older boy, 14-years-old at the time of the arrest, entered a guilty plea in Juvenile Court before Juvenile Judge James Watson.

Meanwhile, charges against the younger of the two, 10 at the time the investigation began, were dismissed with prejudice, because all evidence against him depended on the 14-year-old�s testimony, according to officials. However, the charges can be reinstated if other evidence is found outside of the codefendant�s statements, according to Rhodes.

The older boy was found guilty, by virtue of his plea, of a Class A misdemeanor charge of aggravated animal cruelty because prosecutors couldn�t specify the exact date the offense occurred, which drew the matter into a gray area surrounding a new state law making aggravated animal cruelty a felony offense.

The new law went into effect June 15, upon Gov. Phil Bredesen�s signature on the bill.

The offense in Englewood was believed to have been committed sometime between June 17 and 19, according to Englewood Police Sgt. David Greaves. The abuse was said to have taken place at a residence in Englewood, but no exact dates were specified.

Because the date of the offense couldn�t be specified, the law wouldn�t allow for a felony level charge, according to Rhodes.

Rhodes noted the judge cannot make the charge a felony, and must apply the law as stated in Tennessee Code Annotated.

In the court disposition � which in adult court would be the sentencing phase � the older boy was ordered to perform 100 hours of community service, placed on two years probation and ordered to undergo a mental evaluation, according to officials.

The family of the younger boy, whose case was dismissed, agreed to seek a mental evaluation for him as well, Rhodes said.

�The family (of the younger boy) is voluntarily participating in a mental evaluation just the same as the 14-year-old,� Rhodes said.

In the older boy�s case, �any future charge of animal cruelty would be a felony,� Rhodes said.

The same is the case under state law either under the new provisions or the old as a second offense, according to TCA code.

Rhodes said he felt he should remind citizens that Juvenile Court is rehabilitational in nature and is meant to seek solutions to problems rather than mete out punishment.

�The court seeks to do what�s in the best interest of the child and the community,� Rhodes said.

Rhodes said officials were hoping the youth can perform his community service hours at an area animal shelter if the operators of the shelter are agreeable.

The two boys were charged in June after the discovery of five kittens � just old enough to open their eyes � whose rear legs had been tied together and then hung from a tree.

Greaves, the initial investigator on the case, said in June that statements were given alleging the boys �tied (the kittens) rear legs together at the ankles, hit them against a tree and hung them up where the dogs cold get them.�

The older boy was said by police to have used a box cutter-type knife to cut on his small, mixed-breed dog.

The dog survived his injuries and has since found a new home, according to authorities.

Larry Eaton, of the local chapter of the Humane Society, said in response to the outcome in the case that he thought prosecutors in the case �did a splendid job.�

Eaton said Greaves� persistence was admirable.

�I�m glad to see Sgt. Greaves followed this thing to an end,� he said. �I believe the District Attorney�s office did everything in their power to prosecute the case.�

Eaton said he felt Watson�s disposition in the case �was appropriate.�

Watson said during the hearing the case has received more public attention than any case he�s heard.

Both boys now remain with their parents, according to officials.

Source: The Daily Post-Athenian - Sept 23, 2004
Update posted on Sep 24, 2004 - 4:54AM

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Youths tied kittens, beat them, hung them as baitEnglewood, TN (US)

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Youths tied kittens, beat them, hung them as bait
Englewood, TN (US)