CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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Case #6574 Rating: 4.3 out of 5
Dog choked, thrown against wall
Newton, PA (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, May 31, 2005
County: Westmoreland
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Justin Eugene Lloyd
A Newville-area man was handed a state prison sentence on December 13, 2005 for a host of charges stemming from a rage-fueled incident at a North Newton home in June 2005.
Justin Eugene Lloyd, 21, pleaded guilty in November 2005 to aggravated assault, criminal trespass, escape, simple assault and cruelty to animals, which was down from the 22 charges state police originally levied against him.
At the time, police said a fight broke out after an enraged Lloyd began choking a pet dog and threw the animal against a wall. He then stabbed a man who was trying to intervene with a three-inch pocket knife and disconnected two phones as victims tried to call police. During the scuffle over the telephones, Lloyd also kicked a woman in the face, hit a girl in the arm and pointed the knife at another woman while threatening to kill her.
Then before fleeing the scene, he punctured two vehicle tires, smashed a lamp and a cell phone, and kicked in a bedroom door, police said. While being handcuffed, Lloyd then pulled free and ran onto a neighbor's property, where he scaled a greenhouse roof before running through a neighbor's house and into a field, where he tried to ditch the knife.
During the sentencing, the dog's owner sat in court, but declined to say anything. He wasn't seeking any restitution, Assistant District Attorney John Dailey said.
Judge Kevin Hess ordered Lloyd to serve one to three years in state prison, citing Lloyd's past criminal record as proof that the "prior contacts (with the justice system) have not served their purpose of rehabilitation."
Court records show Lloyd has previously:
• Pleaded guilty to minor drug charges stemming from a May 6, 2005 incident in Middlesex Township.
• Pleaded guilty to consolidated charges of simple assault and making terroristic threats dating from a May 2004 incident in Silver Spring. Lloyd was originally facing 14 criminal charges in this case.
• Struck a plea bargain for trespassing charge in August of 2003 stemming from a Perry County incident.
• Some eight days prior to that, he was handed simple assault, trespassing and harassment charges. He pleaded guilty to the assault and trespassing charge.
References« PA State Animal Cruelty Map
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