Case Details

Dog beaten with baseball bat Philadelphia, PA (US) Incident Date: Friday, Aug 23, 2002 County: Philadelphia Local Map: available Disposition: Convicted Defendant/Suspect: Russell Watson Case Updates: 2 update(s) available

Case ID: 418 Classification: Beating Animal: dog (pit-bull) View more cases in PA (US) Login to Watch this Case

The teenager who, police say, was caught on tape viciously beating a one-year-old pit bull with a baseball bat will remain in custody.

Russell Watson has been ordered held at a youth services center at least until his September 5th court hearing on drug and animal cruelty charges. Eyewitness News' Amy Polacko reports there is now doubt about the suspect's true age and officials are not sure if he should be tried as a juvenile or an adult.

Authorites say after portions of the laundromat surveillance tape were shown on local newscasts they received a number of tip calls lead them to Watson.

At the time of his arrest police say Watson had over 30 vials of crack cocaine in his possession and further investigation revealed he was wanted in connection with previous drug charges.

Authorities say the dog was beaten outside the laundromat at the corner of 36th and Spring Garden Street an unknown number of times on Tuesday morning before it ran inside in an attempt to escape.

The camera was rolling as the suspect allegedly followed the dog inside, beat him between 15-16 times with a bat, then dragged him back outside as horrified workers called 911.

Watkins' relatives say Russell is a long-time animal lover and retaliated against the dog when it attacked him as he tried to help it after it was hit by a car.

The dog's owners, the Robinson family, decided to put the animal to sleep on Thursday after consulting with doctors at the SPCA.

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References

	Eyewitness News KYW
	Channel 6 Action News
	Philidelphia Inquirer

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