It took Hall County sheriff's deputies, animal control officers and a veterinarian's assistant more than five hours to remove 35 malnourished dogs on June 21 from a residence west of Grand Island.
Two of the animals were pregnant, six were puppies and one dog was hanging by a chain from a tree. Most of the dogs are pit bulls and many had injuries that may have resulted from fighting.
Hall County Chief Deputy Sheriff Chris Rea said he didn't think the residence owner was involved with the dogs but that at least some of them were owned by a renter.
Rea didn't know when the dogs were last fed or watered.
In May, authorities were tipped that animals being kept at the house were used for illegal dog fighting. But officers found only one dog when they checked the house, Rea said.
Deputy Frank Bergmark said the adult dogs found on June 21 were chained to trees.
Several dogs were injured, but whether from staged fights or just too many dogs in close proximity was still under investigation.
The number of dogs and their living conditions were discovered on June 20 after deputies responded to a domestic disturbance and made an arrest.
Deputies returned on June 21 with animal control officers.
No charges have been filed regarding the animal neglect, Deputy Rea said. Case UpdatesAaron Woodward surrendered 29 of the dogs with the condition that they be destroyed.
Many of the dogs were so aggressive, Brad Driml, director of the Central Nebraska Humane Society believes they had been bred to bring out that trait. He also believes the animals had been used for fighting.
"It's that old case of if it looks like a duck and walks like a duck...it's probably a duck," he said.
The case began on June 21, when Hall County sheriff's deputies called animal control officers from the Humane Society to remove 32 dogs found at 1091 N. 60th Road.
One of the animals was deceased, 29 were pit bulls, one was a Rottweiler and one was a mixed breed dog, Driml said.
Two of the animals were pregnant and gave birth to 11 puppies between them over the Fourth of July weekend, he said. Since the puppies were born on Humane Society property, Driml considered his agency to have ownership of the animals.
One of the mothers had to be euthanized because she was attacking her own puppies. All of the puppies were sent to an out-of-state rescue agency, where employees worked with them to try and prepare them for adoption. However, one litter was so aggressive at eight weeks that they had to be euthanized, he said.
All of the animals were examined by either veterinarians or vet's technicians and many were good with people. However, most of the dogs were aggressive toward other dogs, which Driml believes is a sign they had been bred to fight. Many of the dogs had scars and one even chewed through a chainlink fence.
Twelve of the dogs also tested positive for hookworms and roundworms and some had ringworms. All of the animals had health issues, he said.
The stories the Humane Society heard from Woodward and the other men who claimed to own some of the dogs lacked consistency and kept changing, Driml said.
Woodward couldn't be contacted for this story. However, he was interviewed by The Independent on July 7 along with three other men who said they owned the dogs. At that time, the men said they were in the process of starting a nonprofit rescue agency for pit bulls and denied that the animals had been neglected.
Driml said certain standards must be followed by such agencies. Having dogs chained to trees without food and water don't meet those standards, he said.
He acknowledged that there is a stereotype surrounding pit bills but he knows not every dog in that breed is dangerous.
"Not all pit bulls are bad," he said. "I think a lot of bad people have pit bulls."
The Humane Society was brought into this case by the Sheriff's Department and, as a result of that involvement, Driml believes he's unfairly become a target.
"I'm not the bad guy here," he said.
After the animals were removed from the property, some were sent to other locations due to space constraints at the local Humane Society. The two non-pit bulls were sent to a shelter in Omaha and Driml said their owner failed to come up with the money needed to claim the animals. Driml doesn't know for sure what happened to the dogs but he suspects they were probably euthanized in Omaha.
Driml said Woodward, who was renting the property where the dogs were found, signed the surrender papers on July 1. Hall County Sheriff's Capt. Jim Castleberry said he witnessed the signature in his office.
The dogs were held for 10 more days and then euthanized, so Woodward had ample opportunity to change his mind, Driml said.
Hall County reimbursed the Humane Society $2,845 for the animals that were kept off-site but the agency absorbed the on-site costs, which added up to approximately $4,200, Driml said.
The public donated $1,400 to help care for the dogs. In total, the Humane Society spent about $10,000 on this case, he said.
Woodward, 21, was charged in Hall County Court with 31 counts of cruelty to animals. He pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count and was fined $200. Driml said he was disappointed that reimbursement wasn't ordered.
Hall County Attorney Mark Young said Driml and others at the Humane Society were consulted prior to the plea agreement. Although they were concerned about the costs to the agency, Young said his office had to be practical. Judges base restitution orders, in part, on a defendant's ability to pay and given Woodward's history of failing to appear in court and since exact ownership of the animals couldn't be determined, restitution would have been nearly impossible, Young said. | Source: The Independent - Oct 2, 2005
Update posted on Oct 3, 2005 - 12:13PM |
A man charged with 31 counts of cruelty to animals pleaded guilty to one count and was fined Tuesday. Aaron Woodward, 21, turned himself in to authorities around 9 a.m. Tuesday. There had been a warrant for his arrest after he failed to appear in court this summer.
Thirty of the counts were dismissed. He pleaded guilty to the remaining charge and was fined $200.
Central Nebraska Humane Society animal control officers and Hall County sheriff's deputies confiscated 32 dogs, one of them deceased, from 1091 N. 60th Road on June 21. The adult dogs were chained to trees, and several puppies were found in an outbuilding.
Woodward and the other owners have denied the dogs were being mistreated.
The Hall County attorney's office had offered the plea agreement previously and Woodward turned them down. He then requested a trial.
Woodward had said he didn't believe he should be held accountable for dogs he doesn't own. He surrendered his five pit bulls because he didn't have the money to get them back from the humane society.
According to the initial arrest warrant affidavit for Woodward, 75 percent of the dogs were in bad shape and none were being cared for properly. | Source: Grand Island Independent - Sept 28, 2005
Update posted on Sep 29, 2005 - 11:19PM |
The number of cruelty to animal charges against Aaron Woodward now matches the number of surviving dogs that were confiscated from his rental property. Woodward is charged with 31 counts of cruelty to animals.
Woodward, 21, was arrested around noon on July 1 by a Hall County sheriff's deputy who saw him going into a home on West Capital Avenue, Capt. Jim Castleberry said.
Investigators had received information that Woodward had been staying in the home and a deputy was watching the residence, Castleberry said.
The original compliant accompanying the arrest warrant affidavit charged Woodward with five counts of cruelty to animals.
Hall County Attorney Mark Young said Tuesday that sorting out the information in this case and finding a way to identify 31 similar dogs took a lot of time. He filed the initial charges in order to get an arrest warrant for Woodward, knowing he would be able to amend the document later.
The arrest warrant affidavit indicates Woodward claims ownership of 15 of the 32 dogs found at 1091 N. 60th Road on June 20. The animals had no food, water or shelter from the heat. The adults were chained to trees and several puppies were found in an outbuilding. The animals, including one who had died, were confiscated by animal control officers June 21.
Young said Woodward is expected in court today to enter a plea. He was released on a 10 percent of $5,000 bond Friday afternoon.
Castleberry said Friday that two men, believed to own the dogs not claimed by Woodward, were still being sought. | Source: The Independent - July 6, 2005
Update posted on Jul 9, 2005 - 8:23AM |
It took more than five hours to remove 35 dogs, most of which are pit bulls, from the property at 1091 N. 60th Road Tuesday, said Hall County Chief Deputy Sheriff Chris Rea.
Central Nebraska Humane Society animal control officers, Hall County sheriff's deputies and a veterinarian's assistant worked together in the hot sun Tuesday to bring some relief to the animals.
All 35 were malnourished and neglected.
Two are pregnant. Six are just puppies. One was found hanging by his chain from a tree.
The property, which is near the intersection of 60th Road and 13th Street, is owned by James Baxter but deputies don't believe he is involved with the dog situation. Some of the dogs are owned by Aaron Woodward, who is renting the home, and William Jones, Rea said. It didn't appear that anyone was living in the home, he said.
Deputies are investigating if other owners are involved, he said.
Authorities didn't know Tuesday how long it had been since the animals had been fed or received water, Rea said. Temperatures have reached into the 90s over the last several days.
Deputy Frank Bergmark responded to the scene. He said all of the adult dogs were chained to trees around the home. Some had empty dishes nearby and most had a barrel laying on its side for shelter. The puppies were all found inside an outbuilding, he said.
Some of the animals' chains were tangled around trees. Several dogs are in bad condition and need medical attention, he said.
Three "no trespassing" signs were posted on trees and poles around the home and were visible from 60th Road. The home was half painted and several of the outbuildings are falling down. There are also several piles of debris behind the home and near one of the outbuildings.
Bergmark said only a couple of dogs were visible from the road. The costs associated with getting the dogs proper care will be high because they will all need to be seen by a veterinarian, many need treatment and they will have to be boarded until the case is resolved, he said.
Humane Society Executive Director Brad Driml said the facility housed as many of the animals as possible. The remaining dogs are being kept at other boarding businesses in Grand Island and one facility in another town, he said.
The 34 surviving dogs will all need vaccinations while under the Humane Society's care, he said.
"While they're here, they'll have a place to sleep and get meals," he said.
The large intake volume, on top of the other daily calls, will put a strain on the facility, he said. Anyone wishing to make a financial donation specifically for the care of the dogs confiscated Tuesday is welcome to do so, he said.
"This proves how badly we need a new facility, so we can handle a situation like this better," Driml said.
The situation came to light Monday after a domestic disturbance in Grand Island. Police were called in reference to the disturbance after Jones and Christine Penfield went into a Grand Island store where they purchased dog food. The couple left before police arrived, Rea said.
Deputies were called after the couple arrived at the home on 60th Road and Penfield asked one of the other people at the residence to call 911, Rea said. It is unclear why the other people were at the home Monday afternoon.
When deputies arrived, they saw several dogs on the property but their main concern was the domestic situation. Jones was arrested and the Humane Society was notified about the large number of dogs on the property. Deputies didn't know Monday that the animals didn't have food or water, Rea said.
Animal control officers responded to the home Tuesday morning to deal with the situation, he said. The officers had received a tip in early May that pit bulls being used for dog fighting were being kept at the home. However, at that time only one dog was found at the house and there was no evidence of dog fighting, he said.
On Tuesday, several of the dogs had visible injuries and deputies are investigating the possibility that the dogs were being used for fighting. It is also possible that the injuries are due to the large number of malnourished animals being kept in one place, Rea said.
Jones was charged in Hall County Court Tuesday with felony tampering with a witness, felony terroristic threats and misdemeanor third-degree domestic assault for the Monday incidents involving Penfield.
His bond was set at 10 percent of $5,000 and he was ordered not to have contact with Penfield. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 19.
No charges have been filed regarding the animal neglect. The matter is still under investigation, Rea said. | Source: The Independent - June 22, 2005
Update posted on Jun 28, 2005 - 9:05PM |
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