Cat kicked
Huntington Beach, CA (US)Incident Date: Saturday, Aug 20, 2005
County: Orange
Disposition: Alleged
Case Images: 1 files available
Alleged: Kenneth Todd Clark
Once full of life and vigor, Cabo the cat now spends his days curled up in the corner, his spirits nearly as battered as his left eye -- the result of an alleged Aug. 20 attack by a neighbor.
"He was a beautiful cat that used to always go out on the sidewalk and greet people," said owner John Macaulay, who shares a Huntington Harbour beachside condo with his wife of 10 years, Nancy Swain. "Now he just sits inside. I think he's too terrified to go out."
The cat is also blind in his left eye.
Swain said she saw the whole thing happen. Up early to prepare for a trip to Catalina Island, Swain was packing outside when she heard someone walking through her apartment complex, a man she recognized from several buildings down.
Cabo approached the man, Swain said, and the man responded by kicking Cabo in the head, sending the cat flying into the greenery.
Police later identified the man as Kenneth Todd Clark, 37, who was said to be under the influence of alcohol at the time, according to the police report. Swain was cited on suspicion of animal cruelty and released.
"After he was kicked, I woke my husband up and we went searching for Cabo. We looked for a while and couldn't find him, but when I returned to my apartment, I saw him sitting in front of our door," Swain said. "His eye was blood red, and he was in great pain."
The cat was rushed to an emergency veterinary clinic and treated by veterinarian William Grant.
"Physical exam revealed a proptosed [protruded] left eye and severe swelling associated with the left temporal region of the skull," Grant wrote in a medical briefing on the case. "These findings are consistent with severe blunt trauma to the head."
Swain and her husband are now pushing for Clark to get the maximum penalty for cruelty to animals -- a felony charge that could send Clark to state prison for three years.
That probably won't happen, said Orange County Deputy District Atty. Jo Escobar, who expected Grant to be charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty -- punishable by up to one year in county jail and a $20,000 fine.
Escobar said the difference between felony and misdemeanor animal cruelty generally relates to the level of injury to an animal and is left to the discretion of the prosecuting attorney. The district attorney's office also considers the criminal history of the defendant and the facts of the crime.
"To charge someone with a felony is really saying this individual should go to state prison for this crime," Escobar said.
To contact the prosecutor in this case:
The Honorable Tony Rackauckas
Orange County District Attorney's Office
8141 13th St.
Westminster, CA 92683
714-896-7236 (fax) References« CA State Animal Cruelty Map
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