Pig severely beaten
Lawrence, MA (US)Incident Date: Wednesday, Dec 22, 2004
County: Essex
Disposition: Open
Suspect(s) Unknown - We need your help!
When Officer Maurice Aguiler rushed to investigate a report of a man being beaten in a back yard, he found pools of blood in the small yard behind 320 Lawrence St., two knives on top of a barbecue grill and a few bloody sticks on the ground.
In a corner of the yard, a bloody 100-pound pig with a wooden stake in its side was gasping for air.
Aguiler had to shoot the pig after Martha Parkhurst, an enforcement officer with the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, determined it was beaten nearly to death and could not be saved.
Police assume the pig was being prepared for a roast, but those responsible for the beating could face animal cruelty charges.
Parkhurst said it is legal to slaughter a pig but not if it is done in an "inhumane" way.
Officers canvassed the neighborhood for witnesses, but Animal Control Officer Ellen Bistany said none was found. Officers were unable to find anyone at the residence.
"No one saw anything," Bistany said. "This is awful. There must be someone who witnessed this."
Parkhurst, whose territory covers most of the North Shore, said Lawrence zoning laws prohibit the keeping of farm animals within city limits but "people around here know where to get a pig." References« MA State Animal Cruelty Map
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