Pet-Abuse.Com - Animal Abuse Case Details: Dog thrown into traffic - hit and killed

Dog thrown into traffic - hit and killed
Gardena, CA (US)

Incident Date: Tuesday, Aug 30, 2005
County: Los Angeles
Local Map: available
Disposition: Convicted
Charges: Felony CTA

Abuser/Suspect: Emidio Jesus Medina

Case Updates: 3 update(s) available

Case ID: 5934

Classification: Vehicular

Animal: dog (non pit-bull)

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Child or elder neglect

Prosecutors filed felony animal cruelty charges November 3, 2005 against a man who threw his girlfriend's dog into a Gardena street because he felt she loved the dog more than she loved him.

The Chihuahua was hit by a car and killed while the girlfriend and her two young children watched, according to police reports.

Emidio Jesus Medina, 28, of Compton was charged with one count of animal cruelty and two counts of child endangerment for inflicting mental suffering on his girlfriend's children, who were 4 and 2 years old.

He is expected to appear in Torrance Superior Court. If convicted, he faces up to eight years in state prison, according to Deputy District Attorney Brad McCartt.

The dog's owner, Patricia Morales, 23, hung up on a reporter.

According to police reports, officers went to the 12800 block of Budlong Avenue on Aug. 30 in response to a call about a family disturbance.

Two witnesses told officers they saw the couple arguing in front of two children, then saw the man lift the small black and white dog over his head and throw it into the street in front of an oncoming car.

The car, whose driver is not known, hit the dog and continued down the street.

According to the police report, Medina told an officer he and Morales were arguing and he threw the dog in the street.

"She loves that dog more than she loves me," Medina told the officer. "I was trying to make a point."

Morales told an officer that they were walking away from her house when her pet Chihuahua slipped through the gate and followed them. She said she took the dog back, and it again went through the gate and again ran to them.

Morales said Medina became upset she was paying more attention to the dog than him. They argued and he pitched the canine into the road.

Morales watched as the dog landed, then stood up -- visibly shaking and unable to keep its balance. Once it got to its feet, though, the car ran over it.

Case Updates

On January 11, 2006, a man who threw his girlfriend's dog into a Gardena street, killing it, accepted a deal in which he will serve as much time behind bars as he likely would have received had he been convicted at trial, according to prosecutors.

In exchange for pleading no contest to felony animal cruelty and one count of misdemeanor child endangerment, Emidio Jesus Medina will serve a year in county jail and spend three years on probation, during which he is required to take parenting and anger management classes. He is also barred from owning an animal, according to Deputy District Attorney Brad McCartt.

Medina, 28, of Compton threw his girlfriend's dog, Bon Bon, into the street near her home in the 12900 block of Budlong Avenue because he believed she loved the dog more than him. As part of the deal, Medina agreed to give up the three months of credit he received for time served since he was taken into custody Nov. 7, 2005 at his arraignment in Torrance Superior Court.

Source: Daily Breeze News - January 12, 2006
Update posted on Jan 15, 2006 - 9:03AM

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On December 15, 2005, a Compton man accused of throwing his girlfriend's dog onto a Gardena street, where it was run over by a car and killed, was ordered to stand trial.

The courts said there was sufficient evidence against Emidio Jesus Medina, 28, for animal cruelty and child endangerment. He will be arraigned at the end of this month.

Source: CBS2 News - December 15, 2005
Update posted on Dec 16, 2005 - 11:28PM

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A man who said he was jealous of his girlfriend�s pet Chihuahua was in jail today after pleading not guilty to charges he threw the dog into a Gardena street, where it was killed by a car.

Emidio Medina, 28, of Compton had remained free since the Aug. 30 incident on the 12900 block of Budlong Avenue, but he was taken into custody at the Torrance Courthouse and held on $90,000 bail. He is charged with animal cruelty and child endangerment.

His attorney, Deputy Public Defender Lupe Oronoz, argued unsuccessfully that Medina should remain free on his own recognizance because he works as a security guard and has a family to support.

The family includes the 2- and 4-year-old daughters he has with his girlfriend, Patricia Morales, 23. The children are the named victims in the two child endangerment counts because they watched as Medina threw the small black and white Chihuahua into the street.

Morales, who was in court and cried as Medina was handcuffed and led to the lockup, declined comment.

However, she told an ABC7 news reporter last week that Medina felt bad for throwing �Bon Bon,� and gave conflicting accounts regarding whether the dog landed on the sidewalk and then ran into the street itself or Medina hurled it into the street.

She told a police officer they were walking away from her home when the dog slipped through the gate twice and ran after them. Morales and other eyewitnesses reported seeing Medina lift the dog over his head and launch him into the street.

The dog got up on shaky legs, but was hit by a car driven by an unidentified driver. Medina told an officer: �She loves that dog more than she loves me. � I was trying to make a point,� according to the police report.

Anya Carter, who was nearby in her car at the time of the incident, said she saw one of the little girls trying to get her dog, but the man snatched it and threw it.

�Oh, that was cold,� she said. �He did it like it was nothing.�

Medina, who goes by the moniker �Little Wino,� has a history of misdemeanor convictions for driving under the influence and without a license, according to law enforcement records.

His records also show a number of arrests for such things as burglary, assault with a deadly weapon and giving false identification to a peace officer, although charges for those alleged crimes were either not filed or dropped.

The reports also state he has tattoos on his chest, hand, abdomen, back and neck and has had identified himself as a student, laborer and painter in the past.

Medina is scheduled to return to court Nov. 22. If convicted, he faces up to eight years in state prison.

Source: Daily Breeze - Nov 7, 2005
Update posted on Nov 7, 2005 - 9:22PM

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References

	Daily Breeze - November 4, 2005
	CBS 2 - Sept 11, 2006

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Dog thrown into traffic - hit and killedGardena, CA (US)

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Dog thrown into traffic - hit and killed
Gardena, CA (US)