Nebraska Humane Society investigators said November 22, 2005 that a Bellevue woman stabbed her dog to death.
Neighbors on Suburban Drive called police November 19, 2005 when they saw someone burying a dog in a back yard. They said they had heard a dog whimpering earlier that night.
Jessica Brisco told investigators her puppy injured itself while trying to jump a fence. She thought it was dead, but the next day when her children told her Chief was still alive, she stabbed the dog. Brisco said she thought the dog was suffering. She's now accused of animal cruelty.
Humane Society veterinarians found no evidence of strangulation on the dog. Instead, they said, the stab wounds caused death. Case UpdatesThe woman convicted of stabbing a puppy last year was sentenced on Thursday morning.
A judge ordered Jessica Bricko to 18 months probation and 48 hours behind bars. The case judge is also requiring Bricko to continue psychiatric counseling and begin family counseling. She's not allowed to own any pets during her probation period.
Bricko said she stabbed her dog to put it out of its misery after it nearly strangled itself on a leash.
"In her mind, she thought it was near death but just suffering immensely and she ended the life, which she thought was in a humane fashion, and the state, of course, said it violated the statutes of our state," said Bricko's attorney Glenn Shapiro.
The judge said that Bricko could face 87 days more jail time in December depending on her behavior during probation.
The Nebraska Humane Society applauded the sentence.
"We're pleased with the upfront jail sentence and the 18 months probation," said NHS's Mark Langan. "We can tell the judge put a lot of thought into this sentence and we certainly appreciate that."
In court, the prosecutor mentioned that Bricko had fought with her husband shortly before the incident.
The humane society said that is a scenario that officials hear about often.
"This is a great example of how domestic violence -- domestic squabbling -- go hand in hand with animal cruelty. And we've been preaching this for years and years and years at the Nebraska Humane Society," Langan said. "The last thing a person should do if they're having family problems at home is adopt a pet and think that pet is going to solve the problems. That pet more than likely will become part of the problem."
Bricko told the judge she was sorry for what she'd done and would never do it again.
Shapiro said mental illness contributed to her actions. | Source: KETV - Sept 28, 2006 Update posted on Sep 28, 2006 - 12:47PM |
The abuse of an animal felony charge against a Bellevue woman has been dismissed, but a misdemeanor may be coming. Jessica Bricko was accused of stabbing her family's puppy to death. Sarpy County Judge Robert Wester ruled last week that evidence against Bricko did not rise to the legal standard of felony abuse of an animal at a preliminary hearing in Sarpy County Court. According to Nebraska law, the act must include mutilation, repeated beatings or knowing and intentional torture to constitute a felony. Bricko had told investigators she stabbed the 4-month-old terrier mix puppy after it accidentally strangled itself with a leash on a porch railing. She thought the dog had died and put it in a shed overnight. It wasn't until about 4 p.m. the next day that Bricko's son found the dog, Chief, still alive. Bricko then stabbed the dog in the abdomen with a knife, killing it.
An animal control officer testified Bricko told her she didn't seek medical treatment for the dog because she had just gotten in a fight with her husband and wasn't in her right mind. A veterinarian with the Nebraska Humane Society testified the dog also had a large bruise on its head. Because of the location of bruises around the whites of the dog's eyes, and lack of bruises around its neck, her professional opinion was that the dog was not strangled. Veterinarian Tonya Katz said Chief died from a combination of blood loss and circulatory shock from the stab wound. "She intentionally ignored the animal's crying," said Greg Ariza, a deputy county attorney. "She just decides to stab it. She decides not to take it to a vet." He said these actions fulfilled the torture requirement of the law. Wester disagreed, and dismissed the felony charge.
Mark Langan, vice president of field operations for the Nebraska Humane Society, said while he respected the judge's decision, he was disappointed. Bricko did not testify at the hearing and shielded her face with a purple and gold scarf as she left the courtroom, refusing to comment. Glenn Shapiro, an attorney representing Bricko, said she is remorseful. "Her intent was genuine, but she went at it the wrong way," he said. Bricko had originally been charged with a misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail. The Sarpy County Attorney's Office upped the charge to a felony, a crime punishable by up to five years in prison. | Source: Bellevue Leader - February 21, 2006 Update posted on Feb 27, 2006 - 6:08PM |
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