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Case #6427 Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Puppy mill - 54 dogs, living in feces
Toccoa, GA (US)Incident Date: Thursday, Dec 1, 2005
County: Stephens
Disposition: Convicted
Defendants/Suspects:
» R V Martin
» Melissa Turpin
Case Updates: 1 update(s) available
Two people charged with felony counts of animal cruelty still had not been arrested as of December 6, 2005, a Stephens County Georgia Sheriff's Office spokeswoman said.
R.V. Martin and Melissa Turpin were charged with animal cruelty last week after Department of Agriculture inspectors found 54 dogs living in horrible conditions at Mr. Martin's kennel off Prather Bridge Road outside Toccoa. Ms. Turpin had reportedly been hired to take care of the dogs while Mr. Martin was in the hospital.
Members of the Stephens County Humane Society and the Atlanta Humane Society took in the 54 small-breed dogs, said Bobby King, animal control officer for Stephens County and Toccoa.
Mr. King accompanied the Department of Agriculture inspectors on the routine inspection and witnessed what he said were terrible conditions. He said dogs were crowded into kennels and were living in their own feces. He said it was hard to put the conditions into words, they were so bad. Joan Allen, a member of the Stephens County Humane Society, took in 14 of the dogs and is looking for people to adopt them, she said. Ms. Allen can be reached at (706) 779-5917.
Case UpdatesThe owner of a puppy mill in Stephens County pleaded "no contest" Friday to animal cruelty. Authorities say R.V. Martin kept dozens of small dogs in filthy and inhumane conditions, using them for breeding.
He then sold the puppies at the flea market in Anderson, SC.
Last November, inspectors with the Department of Agriculture found the dogs in deplorable condition and shut the facility down. Martin's wife signed the dogs over to Stephens County Animal Control where they were transferred to various humane societies and put up for adoption.
Martin, who is in ill health, had his sentence reduced from felony animal cruelty to misdemeanor animal cruelty and was fined $150 plus court, costs. The judge also sentenced him to 12 months probation during which time he is not allowed to own animals or sell them for commercial purposes.
A woman martin hired to care for the breeder dogs, identified as Melissa Turpin, also pleaded no contest and received 12 months probation. Turpin was also barred from owning any animals for 12 months.
Under Georgia's misdemeanor animal cruelty law, Martin and Turpin could have received up to a $1,000 fine and a year in jail. | Source: WNEG Radio - Aug 14, 2006
Update posted on Jan 11, 2007 - 12:11AM |
References« GA State Animal Cruelty Map
« More cases in Stephens County, GA
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