Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: Hoarding - 49 cats seized from trailer home

Hoarding - 49 cats seized from trailer home
Lagrange, ME (US)

Incident Date: Tuesday, Feb 8, 2005
County: Penobscot
Local Map: available
Disposition: Convicted

Abusers/Suspects:
» Mary Delgizzi
» Robert Venti - Dismissed

Case Updates: 4 update(s) available

Case ID: 3759

Classification: Hoarding

Animal: cat

View more cases in ME (US)

A mobile home described as "a giant litter box" was cleared on Feb 8, 2005 of 49 sick and neglected cats, according to an Animal Welfare Program official in Augusta. Humane society agents entered the trailer on a criminal search warrant obtained from a previous visit and found conditions to be unlivable for both the cats and the residents, Animal Welfare Program director Norma Worley said Wednesday.

The conditions of the house were like a "giant litter box," with layers of feces and cat urine covering the floor and a horrible stench pervading all areas of the trailer, she said.

Two elderly men and one elderly woman occupied the house, said Worley, who didn't have the names of the trio. She said the incident was reported to the Bureau of Elder and Adult Services but that she didn't know the status of the three people.

The state official said that animal cruelty charges would be brought against the three because of lack of veterinary care and proper housing for the cats.

All 49 cats were removed from the premises and were split up between the Bangor Humane Society and the Kennebec Valley Humane Society in Augusta, with 20 going to Bangor and 29 going to Augusta. The Bangor Humane Society sent several animal technicians to assist with the seizure.

Jeff Mitchell, executive director of the Bangor Humane Society, said that most of the cats were in extremely poor condition, with severe respiratory infections, dehydration, ear mites and ringworm. He said the animals still were being evaluated.

Asked if the organization could handle the number of animals, Mitchell said, "This is our off season. The months of May through September are generally our more busy time of year, so we have this situation under control."

Roxanne Brann, executive director of the Kennebec Valley Humane Society, said Wednesday that because the cats had never had vaccinations they were considered a rabies risk.

"Many of the outdoor cats have received various scratches and other wounds, making them a public health risk due to potential rabies infections," she said. "We're very concerned about a possible airborne bacterial outbreak within the shelter, so we're doing what we can to minimize that possibility."

Brann added that the society has a policy of euthanizing all cats that have ringworm, and that she expected most of the cats to test positive for the parasite.

Case Updates

Delgizzi avoided jail time on charges of animal cruelty, but a District Court judge ruled on Tuesday that she no longer is allowed to own or possess animals.

Each of the seized cats removed in February from the home of Mary Delgizzi, 44, had to be euthanized.

Delgizzi was sentenced in 13th District Court in Lincoln to six months in jail, but Judge Kevin Stitham suspended the entire sentence.

Instead, she was ordered to serve one year of administrative release, a form of probation, and will pay a fine of $250 and $1,688 in restitution for animal removal costs.

Conditions of Delgizzi's administrative release stipulate that she: follow a therapist's recommendation, be subject to unannounced inspections of her home by animal welfare representatives and police officers and participate in programs at Northeast Occupational Exchange in Bangor.

Delgizzi pleaded guilty to the charge on June 7. She faced a maximum of 364 days in jail for animal cruelty, a Class D crime.

Judge Stitham granted the state ownership of the cats during a civil hearing in February, and they were split between the Bangor Humane Society and the Kennebec Valley Humane Society in Augusta.

The animals suffered from ringworm, upper respiratory infections, feline leukemia and other ailments and, less than two weeks after they were seized, all 49 cats had to be euthanized.

Source: Bangor Daily News - June 23, 2005
Update posted on Jun 23, 2005 - 11:18AM

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Mary Delgizzi, 44, faces a maximum sentence of up to 364 days in prison and a $2,000 fine on a single cruelty to animal charge for her part in the maltreatment and eventual deaths of the animals, said Greg Campbell, Penobscot County assistant district attorney, on Wednesday.

Delgizzi pleaded guilty to the charge on June 7, 2005 in 3rd District Court and is to be sentenced by Judge Kevin Stitham at 1 p.m. June 21 court officials said Wednesday.

"It's entirely up to the judge what sentence to impose, and it's rare that the judge imposes the maximum sentence, but it's a case that we're taking very seriously," Campbell said Wednesday. "That's why there is no plea agreement in the case, and that's why we're going to make sure that the judge is fully aware of the egregious state the animals were in.

"The conditions were really deplorable," he added. "The cats were diseased. They hadn't been properly treated. The premises were absolutely disgusting."

Cruelty to animals is a Class D crime that carries up to 364 days in jail and up to a $2,000 fine.

Stitham ordered as bail conditions that Delgizzi not own or possess any animals and that animal welfare officers be allowed to search her residence once before June 21, court officials said.

The case is not the first in which Delgizzi has been cited for unsanitary conditions involving animals.

According to one published report, Quincy District Court Judge Mark Coven ordered Delgizzi and her husband to clean their South Weymouth, Mass., home in June 2003 after town officials declared the place a health hazard.

Health officials cited the Delgizzis for unsanitary conditions and excessive cats after reporting seeing feces, cat hair, garbage, urine stains and mold in the rooms and trash and motor parts in the yard.

An estimated 20 cats lived there. Town regulations prohibit more than three in any place other than breeding kennels or animal shelters.

Neighbors whose complaints dated to June 2000 said the smell was so bad that they could not sit out on their porches.

When informed of the Massachusetts case, Campbell said he didn't immediately know whether Stitham would give it weight because it was a civil matter.

In Maine, Animal Welfare Program officials described Delgizzi's mobile home as "a giant litter box" with layers of feces and cat urine covering the floor and a pervasive stench. Humane society agents entered the trailer Feb. 8 on a criminal search warrant obtained from a previous visit.

The 49 cats were split up between the Bangor Humane Society and the Kennebec Valley Humane Society in Augusta, with 20 going to Bangor and 29 going to Augusta.

Efforts to save them failed because they were considered health hazards. The cats had ringworm, upper respiratory infections and-or feline leukemia, including a mother cat and all of the several kittens she had, shelter officials said.

Source: Bangor Daily News - June 9, 2005
Update posted on Jun 11, 2005 - 11:28AM

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A LaGrange woman from whom authorities took 49 sick cats that had to be euthanized pleaded not guilty Tuesday to a cruelty to animals charge in District Court. Mary Delgizzi, 44, did not speak during her brief court appearance, according to court officials, and could not be reached for comment afterward.

Judge Kevin Stitham accepted her plea, appointed attorney Cathy Rogers Lufkin of Lincoln to represent her, and set a trial date of May 23 at 1 p.m. according to court officials.

Lufkin said she hadn't had much of a chance to speak to Delgizzi but had a feeling she would not change her plea and the case eventually would go to trial. Delgizzi has 21 days to file a jury trial request. If that happens, the case will be transferred to Bangor.

Dan Wood, an assistant district attorney for Penobscot County, said he might entertain, but doesn't expect to make, any plea bargain offers in this case.

"We believe we have the evidence to substantiate the charge and we view it as a serious case," Wood said Tuesday. "It's a case we will try to resolve without a trial, but that's up to them, not us."

Animal Welfare Program officials described Delgizzi's mobile home as "a giant litter box" with layers of feces and cat urine covering the floor and a pervasive stench. Humane society agents entered the trailer Feb. 8 on a criminal search warrant obtained from a previous visit.

The 49 cats were split up between the Bangor Humane Society and the Kennebec Valley Humane Society in Augusta, with 20 going to Bangor and 29 going to Augusta. Efforts to save them failed.

All of the cats were euthanized because they had ringworm, upper respiratory infections and-or feline leukemia, including a mother cat and all of the several kittens she had, shelter officials said Tuesday.

"The kittens were so infested with ringworm that to have let them live would have posed a health risk," said Sadie Franck, an adoption counselor at the Bangor Humane Society. She did not recall how many kittens were euthanized.

"The cats were in pretty bad shape," Roxanne Brann, executive director of the Kennebec Valley Humane Society, said. "Some that had significant tumors and hair loss and skin loss, so for us it was pretty difficult to deal with."

In response, "we're just trying to educate people on how many pets is too many," said Brann, who believes that Delgizzi "got in over her head and couldn't pay to take care of all of the animals that she continued to get."

Cruelty to animals is a Class D crime. If convicted, Delgizzi could be sentenced to up to 364 days in jail and fined up to $2,000.

A cruelty to animals charge filed against Robert Venti, 54, who was living in the trailer with Delgizzi, was dismissed by the District Attorney's Office on Feb. 23, court officials said.

Source: Bangor News - April 6, 2004
Update posted on Apr 8, 2005 - 9:32PM

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All 49 of the cats removed two weeks ago from a trailer in LaGrange that was described as "a giant litter box" have been euthanized, according to staff at the two shelters where they were taken. The two kittens born at the Bangor Humane Society last week had to be put to sleep along with their mother, Jeff Mitchell, executive director of the Bangor shelter, said Tuesday.

The kittens had been placed in foster care and were being bottle-fed, but were too small and sick to survive.

The cats seized at the trailer suffered from ringworm, upper respiratory infections, feline leukemia and other ailments.

After being removed, they were taken to the Bangor Humane Society and the Kennebec Valley Humane Society in Augusta, with 20 going to Bangor and 29 to Augusta.

The rights of owner Mary Delgizzi, 44, to the animals were terminated Friday by Judge Kevin L. Stitham during a civil procedure in 13th District Court in Dover-Foxcroft.

Delgizzi is scheduled to appear on charges of animal cruelty at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, March 1, in 13th District Court in Lincoln.

Cruelty to animals is a Class D crime. If convicted, Delgizzi could be sentenced to up to 364 days in jail and fined up to $2,000. She also could lose the right ever to own animals.

Animal cruelty charges against Robert Venti, 54, of LaGrange have been dropped, District Attorney R. Christopher Almy said Tuesday.

Animal control officers originally believed that Venti, who was at the trailer when the cats were seized, had some responsibility for the animals, he said.

After the hearing on Friday, it became clear that the cats belonged to Delgizzi.

Source: Bangor News
Update posted on Feb 25, 2005 - 8:07PM

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References

	Bangor News - Feb 10, 2005
	MaineToday.Com/AP Wire - Feb 16, 2005
	WLBZ
	Bangor Daily News - Feb 16, 2005

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Hoarding - 49 cats seized from trailer homeLagrange, ME (US)

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Hoarding - 49 cats seized from trailer home
Lagrange, ME (US)