Cat killed, baked in oven
New Orleans, LA (US)

Incident Date: Sunday, Nov 9, 1997
County: Orleans

Disposition: Alleged

Alleged: Maria Morris

Maria Morris, 21, 4979 Desire Drive, New Orleans told a doctor at Charity Hospital she killed her stepmother's cat after it bit her. Morris came to the hospital on Nov 11, two days after she said the cat bit her.

Morris allegedly shoved the cat into an oven and burned it to death. She has been arrested and booked for cruelty to animals.

The Louisiana Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said, "We've certainly encountered egregious acts of cruelty to animals, but never had one placed in an oven."

The doctor at Charity Hospital reported the woman's statement to the SPCA. When they sent an investigator to the home to look for the cat, "The investigator found it outside where she had pitched it after taking it out of the oven."

When the officers went to Morris' house at about 10:30 a.m., they found her hiding under a bed. When the officers tried to arrest her, she ran away. She was chased down the street and arrested.

New Orleans Health Department officials declared the home unfit for human habitation after finding it structurally unsound and filthy.

Five cats at the house have been taken into protective custody with the consent of Morris' stepmother who also lived there.

A necropsy is being done on the cat to determine cause of death and whether the cat was rabid. This testing is done whenever a cat bites a person.

The SPCA said the cat was very small possibly an older kitten.

Felony cruelty to an animal carries a sentence of one to 10 years in jail and a fine of $1,000 to $25,000. Morris could be the first person tried in New Orleans under the felony provision that was added in 1995.

References

• NOLA - Times Picayune - Nov 19, 1997

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