Dog-fighting - 17 dogs seized - Chesapeake, VA

Friday, Apr 7, 2006

County: Chesapeake City

Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted

Defendants/Suspects:
» Alfred Charles Taylor
» Lisa Washington

Case Updates: 6 update(s) available

Police confiscated 17 pit bulls while looking for dogfighting paraphernalia at a home in Chesapeake.

Animal control office Brian Burda wrote on a search warrant filed in Circuit Court that two of the dogs had scars consistent with patterns for dogfighting. He also found a scale that appeared to be used to weigh dogs before dogfighting matches.

In addition to the dogs, officers confiscated the scales, medical supplies and equipment they described as being used to condition dogs for fighting. A source named in the warrant told police that the dogs were taken to North Carolina to fight and were shot if they didn't perform well.

So far, no one has been charged.

Case Updates

A judge will take under advisement a motion to annul a dog fighting conviction against Alfred C. Taylor Jr., who was arrested two years ago after police removed 17 pit bulls from his rural Chesapeake home. Taylor, 54, was found guilty of dog fighting in December 2006 after a bench trial in Chesapeake Circuit Court. His new attorney, Robert Kowalsky Jr., asked Friday that the conviction be set aside because of what he contends is a flawed indictment and insufficient evidence. Judge V. Thomas Forehand Jr. will consider the motion. Taylor, who is free on bond, is scheduled to return to court in September. During Taylor's one-day trial, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Amy James produced evidence she says is consistent with the training and fighting of dogs, such as anti-inflammatory drugs, a surgical wound stapler and dog fighting literature. Ten dogs seized at Taylor's home had signs of healed wounds. Taylor's former girlfriend, Lisa Washington, was sentenced in 2007 to three years in prison on dog fighting and drug charges.

Source: The Virginian-Pilot - July 19, 2008 Update posted on Jul 21, 2008 - 12:46PM

A 40-year-old former Chesapeake woman was sentenced to three years in prison Friday for dog fighting and drug convictions. Lisa Washington, who lived in the 2700 block of Seven Eleven Road, was charged in 2006 with dogfighting and illegal drug activities, along with Alfred Taylor, her former boyfriend. Taylor has not been sentenced. Circuit Judge Randy Smith sentenced Washington to a total of 10 years in prison for cocaine distribution and dog fighting. He suspended seven years of the sentence on the condition that Washington complete supervised probation upon her release. Washington also was fined $100 for a misdemeanor marijuana possession conviction. Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Amy James acknowledged that Washington was addicted to cocaine and was the less culpable of the two defendants. Authorities seized 17 pit bulls and training equipment from the couple's rural home. Ten of the dogs had signs of healed wounds. Dogs "are victims when they are maintained in this environment and treated this way," James said prior to sentencing. Washington's attorney, Eric Cronin, argued that she had lived with Taylor for only six months and that none of the illegal activity would have come to light if Washington hadn't called police. Taylor, 54, is now a resident of Portsmouth and is scheduled to be sentenced early next year.

Source: Pilotonline.com - Nov 17, 2007 Update posted on Nov 19, 2007 - 2:04PM

Taylor was convicted of possession of marijuana, dog fighting, and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. He will be sentenced on 1/28/07. Lisa Washington pled guilty on 7/19/07 to poss marijuana, poss cocaine with intent to distribute and dog fighting. She will be sentenced on 11/16/07.

Source: Chesepeake Circuit Court Update posted on Nov 2, 2007 - 3:09PM

Lisa Washington was arrested on March 14, 2007 and extradicted to Virginia. According to court records, on July 19, 2007, she pled guilty to dog fighting, possession of marijuana, and manufacture/sale/possession of cocaine. A pre-sentence report has been ordered, and the matter has been continued to October 15, 2007. Charges of conspiracy to distribute cocaine, possession of a firearm by convicted felon, possession of a firearm with drugs, and conspiracy to commit dog fighting were all dismissed as part of the plea agreement. Alfred Charles Taylor was scheduled to be sentenced on August 9, 2007, but this matter was continued to October.

Source: Chesapeake Circuit Court Update posted on Aug 17, 2007 - 2:10AM

A 53-year-old man was convicted Monday of illegal dogfighting – nine months after Animal Control removed 17 pit bulls from the rural Chesapeake home he rented. Alfred Taylor was convicted in Chesapeake Circuit Court during a one-day bench trial before Judge S. Bernard Goodwyn. Taylor, a former resident of the 2700 block of Seven Eleven Road, is to be sentenced for the felony in March. A second charge of conspiracy was thrown out. Taylor denied owning the dogs, 10 of which had signs of healed wounds. He denied knowledge that they were being trained to fight. "I would never do that," he testified. Commonwealth's Attorney Amy James, however, produced numerous pieces of evidence consistent with the training and fighting of the dogs. It included a surgical wound stapler, dogfighting literature, wound cream, injectable anti-inflammatory drugs, protein supplements, a spring rope, a scale and two break sticks, which are used to pry open the locked jaws of fighting dogs. "There's no other reason to have the dogs in this situation unless you are promoting or engaging in the fighting of dogs," James sai d. Kathy Strouse, Chesapeake animal control coordinator, testified that the dogs were removed from the backyard of the single-story house in late March. A specially rigged treadmill at the house, fish anti biotics and the underground magazine Sporting Dog Journal were all signs of dogfighting activity, Strouse said. Taylor's defense attorney, Andrew James, argued that there was never a confession by his client. There was not a single witness to his client's alleged dogfighting, he said. Dogfighting journals found at the house also could not be linked to Taylor, Andrew James argued. "It's a lot of speculation," he said. "There's some smoke, but there's no fire here." A second person, Lisa Washington, also was indicted on dogfighting and conspiracy to dogfight. Washington, a former girlfriend of Taylor's who stayed at the Chesapeake home, is listed as a fugitive, according to court records.

Source: Hampton Roads - Dec 19, 2006 Update posted on Dec 20, 2006 - 12:54PM

A Chesapeake Grand Jury has indicted two people for operating one of the largest dog fighting rings this city has seen in recent years. Alfred Taylor and Lisa Washington are both charged with felony dogfighting and conspiracy to commit dog fighting and Washington is charged with much, much more. Back in March police were called to 2745 Seven Eleven Road in Southern Chesapeake to investigate an assault. But according to court paper the officers say much more. They soon returned with a search warrant and confiscated illegal drugs and equipment to train dogs to fight. Animal control officers confiscated 17 dogs."Two of them had scarring and there body condition was dull hair and coats, brittle hair some were mildly thin," said animal control coordinator, Kathy Strouse. Neither Alfred Taylor or Lisa Washington were at home to respond to the long list of charges they're now facing. If found guilty Taylor and Washington are looking at as much as a decade behind bars. As for the 17 dogs, their fate would be a lot worse. "If you come in and adopt one of these dogs and your next door neighbor has a little yorkie or a beagle and one of those dogs eats through the fence and kills the yorkie or beagle, it's not going to be good. And we don't feel it's an appropriate risk for any community," Strouse said. In addition to the dog fighting charges, Washington is also facing marijuana and cocaine charges, as well as possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Source: News Channel 3 - May 4, 2006 Update posted on May 9, 2006 - 10:00AM

References

• WAVY - April 7, 2006
• News Channel 3 - May 4, 2006
• News Channel 3 - May 6, 2006

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