A Hanover Park man was sentenced to 1 year in prison for cutting off a cat's tail. Keith Migasi, 43, of the 7600 block of Bristol Lane, pleaded guilty to one felony count of animal torture before Judge John Scotillo in the Rolling Meadows branch of Cook County Circuit Court. Scotillo had some harsh words for Migasi. "Degradation is the nature of a man who has failed his duty as a human being," he said. "When you get out, I hope you will start living your life as a man again."
Migasi was arrested in February after a roommate's cat jumped onto a kitchen counter while he was making a tuna sandwich. Migasi chased the cat with a butcher knife and cut off four inches of its tail, according to prosecutors. The roommate found the cat bleeding behind a couch and took it to a veterinary hospital. The cat was put up for adoption after the roommate could not pay the medical bills.
After the hearing, Migasi's relatives protested the sentence, noting that he has spent 100 days in jail. "We were hoping for time served or probation," said Marlene Migasi, his mother. Migasi's brothers, Kurt and Darren, said the cat was known to bite and scratch Migasi's 7-year-old son during visits. "It also attacked other nieces and nephews," said Darren Migasi, who owned the home where the incident took place.
The family said Migasi originally was charged with misdemeanor criminal damage to property, but the charges were upgraded to a felony after animal rights activists lobbied the state's attorney's office. Steve Rosenblum, deputy supervisor of the state's attorney's office in Rolling Meadows, said animal rights groups had nothing to do with the charges. Neighborhood MapFor more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.
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