The video contains no sound but depicts the bloody and violent death of a small animal, according to police.
In the video, which police are using as evidence, a man using a broomstick is shown knocking a frightened kitten from what appears to be rafters in a basement of a home.
Another man holds a pit bull and tries to agitate the dog as a third man watches the proceedings.
The Cumberland County District Attorney's office said the men, ages 25, 19 and 18, and a 15-year-old girl face felony animal cruelty charges for videotaping a staged fight between the pit bull and kitten that ends with the kitten's death.
Those charges, expected to be filed within a week, carry possible prison terms and heavy fines.
The girl, a Big Spring High School student from West Pennsboro Twp., received the kitten from a Carlisle resident who was giving it away, investigators said. They said the girl saw an advertisement for the free kitten in a newspaper.
The girl, who state police said videotaped the incident, used a digital camera to show still images of the attack taken from the video to several classmates at the Cumberland Perry Area Vocational Technical School in March, authorities said.
Police later found the video, which they said was filmed in February. The teen was emotionless as she explained the events depicted on it, they said.
"She was very matter-of-fact in describing the whole thing," said Trooper Scott Leidigh. "The students who saw the images were horrified by what they had seen."
William Sandstrom, an officer with the Humane Society of Harrisburg Area Inc., called the three-minute video "an extreme act of cruelty, for sheer sadistic pleasure."
State police said they were not releasing the names of the people involved until they are charged.
"I would say all three men appear to be pretty entertained by what was going on," Leidigh said.
Senior Assistant District Attorney John Dailey said the four could each face a misdemeanor charge of cruelty to animals and a felony charge of animal fighting.
The fighting charge carries a maximum prison sentence of seven years and a $15,000 fine. A cruelty to animals charge in this case would be a first-degree misdemeanor with a possible penalty of a $1,000 fine and up to 2 years in prison, Dailey said.
Leidigh said the pit bull was not taken from its owner. Sandstrom said he hopes to have the dog removed and placed in a new home.
"I don't see how any animal lover can say that's the type of environment you want a dog in," he said.
Cumberland Perry Area Vocational Technical School Administrative Director Mary E. Rodman and Big Spring Superintendent Richard Fry said they had no plans to discipline the girl because the incident was not reported directly to teachers or administrators.
Rodman said the father of a girl who saw the tape reported the incident to the Big Spring school district.
Fry said the girl would not be disciplined by Big Spring because the images were not shown on school grounds. Case UpdatesAttorneys waive their right to a preliminary hearing after viewing a videotape of the animals involved.
Formal arraignments are scheduled for August 15 for two Newville-area men charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty and felony animal fighting.
The preliminary hearings for Gavyn Allen Metcalf, 19, and Matthew Ryan Conklin, 20, were waived Thursday after their attorneys viewed videotape.
The men were among four individuals charged in early May for baiting a pit bull with a kitten. The kitten's killing was videotaped Feb. 28, authorities say
Police say the incident took place in Metcalf's basement along Burgners Mill Road.
Conklin, of East Main Street in Plainfield, waited for his private attorney for nearly two hours Thursday morning. The hearing was going to be rescheduled but the attorney showed up before Conklin left.
Two others charged in the incident are facing the same misdemeanor and felony charges. A 15-year-old female Big Spring High School student is accused of operating the digital camera that filmed the incident and Ronald Airesman, 21, is identified as the third man in the video.
Police have not yet found Airesman.
The charges carry a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a $15,000 fine.
The 15-year-old girl is being prosecuted as a minor and will have a closed-door hearing before a county judge.
She was called to testify at Metcalf's and Conklin's preliminary hearings Thursday.
While waiting in District Judge Vivian Cohick's courtroom, the 15-year-old expressed frustration with the television camera crews waiting outside the court building.
�They're so stupid,� she said, with tears in her eyes. She said she did not want to leave the building until they departed.
Authorities say they found out about the kitten killing when the girl showed parts of the video to students at Cumberland-Perry Area Vocational Technical School in March.
Authorities say the video shows someone knocking a kitten from the basement rafters with a broomstick and another man holding a pit bull and trying to agitate it while a third man watches.
An affidavit says the dog then killed the kitten by clamping it in its mouth and shaking it. The defendants allegedly threw its body in the back yard. | Source: The Sentinel - June 23, 2006
Update posted on Jul 1, 2006 - 10:49AM |
Gavyn Ryan Metcalf and Matthew Allen Conklin said they were both "just there" when a videotape of a pit bull mauling and killing a kitten was made in February.
Yesterday (June 1, 2006), just before attending a hearing at the office of District Judge Vivian Cohick, Metcalf, 19, of Burgners Mill Road, and Conklin, 20, of East Main Street, both of West Pennsboro Twp., said they were innocent of misdemeanor cruelty to animals and felony charges of animal fighting.
After meeting with their attorneys for almost an hour, Cohick postponed the hearing until June 22.
A third man, Ronald Airesman, 21, has also been charged but not arrested. State police said they have been unable to locate Airesman.
Conklin and Metcalf told Cohick they hadn't seen Airsman in some time.
A 15-year-old Big Spring High School student, who police said shot the video, has been charged with the same counts.
Police didn't name her because she is being treated as a minor.
The girl received the kitten from a Carlisle resident who was giving it away in February, specifically to let the dog attack the kitten, investigators said.
The girl told police she believed she got the cat from a home along Louther Street, arrest records state.
Police said the video was filmed in the basement of Metcalf's home.
The 15-year-old girl is believed to be Metcalf's ex-girlfriend, police said.
Authorities said she eventually used a digital camera to show images of the attack taken from the video to several classmates at the Cumberland Perry Area Vocational Technical School in March.
Police later found the video and interviewed the girl. She was emotionless as she explained the events depicted on it, they said.
In the video, which police are using as evidence, a man using a broomstick knocks a frightened kitten from what appears to be rafters in a basement of Metcalf's home, according to authorities.
Another man holds a pit bull and tries to agitate the dog as a third man watches the proceedings, authorities said.
At one point, both animals go out of camera view and are pulled back into frame, investigators said. | Source: The Patroit News - June 2, 2006
Update posted on Jun 16, 2006 - 11:50PM |
Gavyn Metcalf, 18, of Carlisle, and Matthew Conklin, 20, of Plainfield, had been scheduled for a preliminary hearing Thursday on charges of misdemeanor cruelty-to-animals and felony animal-fighting charges. The hearing was postponed.
A 15-year-old girl who allegedly shot the video also is charged in the case. Police have charged but not arrested a third man, Ronald Airesman, 21.
Authorities claim the girl obtained the kitten specifically for the attack in February from a Carlisle resident who was giving away the animal. | Source: NEPA News - June 2, 2006
Update posted on Jun 7, 2006 - 8:29PM |
Criminal charges were filed against three Newville-area men and a 15-year-old girl in the videotaping of a pit bull attacking and killing a kitten.
Gavyn Metcalf, 18, Ronald Airesman, 21, and Matthew Conklin, 20, were charged Friday with misdemeanor cruelty to animals and a felony charge of animal fighting, police said.
A 15-year-old girl, a Big Spring High School student, who police said shot the video, has been charged with the same counts. Police didn't name her because she is being treated as a minor.
Since the case was first reported last week, The Patriot-News has received telephone calls and e-mails from readers.
The girl received the kitten from a Carlisle resident who was giving it away in February, specifically to let the dog attack the kitten, investigators said.
Police said the video was filmed in the basement of Metcalf's home along Burgner's Mill Road in West Pennsboro Twp. The 15-year-old girl is believed to be Metcalf's ex-girlfriend, police said.
Later she used a digital camera to show images of the attack taken from the video to several classmates at the Cumberland Perry Area Vocational Technical School in March, authorities said.
Police later found the video and interviewed the girl. She was emotionless as she explained the events depicted on it, they said.
In the video, which police are using as evidence, a man using a broomstick knocks a frightened kitten from what appears to be rafters in a basement of Metcalf's home, according to authorities.
Another man holds a pit bull and tries to agitate the dog as a third man watches the proceedings, authorities said.
The fighting charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 7 years in prison and a $15,000 fine. A cruelty to animals charge in this case would be a first-degree misdemeanor with a possible penalty of a $1,000 fine and up to 2 years in prison.
A preliminary hearing is expected to be scheduled after the four are arrested this week. | Source: The Patroit News - May 1, 2006
Update posted on May 1, 2006 - 2:49PM |
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