20 Neglected dogs removed from squalor Woodbine, MD (US) Incident Date: Tuesday, Jan 2, 2001 County: Howard Local Map: available Disposition: Convicted Abuser/Suspect: Joseph Francis Richards

Case ID: 9268 Classification: Hoarding Animal: dog (non pit-bull) View more cases in MD (US) Login to Watch this Case

Joseph Francis Richards, 42, has been convicted of 13 counts of animal cruelty and sentenced to probation. On Jan 2, 2001 investigators went into the Woodbine home he shared with his 78-year old mother and found 20 neglected, thin dogs living in squalor.

Richards said the dogs belonged to his mother, but Judge Raymond J. Kane Jr, Howard County Circuit Court said he was responsible for providing "sustenance" for the dogs.

When the authorities went into the home on 15200 block of Frederick Road after receiving an anonymous complaint, they found Katherine Richards sitting in a chair upstairs, surrounded by 18 of the dogs. The room she was found in was filthy, smelled of dog feces and urine. There were two dogs in another room.

Katherine Richards testified the dogs were hers. She said she assumed responsibility for the dogs. She knew them all by name, she fed them, brushed them, and took them outside. "They were my family," she said.

It was stated that Katherine Richards was not in any condition to care for the animals at the time of the investigation. Judge Kane Jr said, "He (Joseph Richards) was part of the family. .... Richards was not a stranger renting the downstairs apartment."

The judge acquitted Richards of seven cruelty counts because the animals appeared to be healthier than the others. Two dogs were adopted and the other 18 dogs were euthanized.

Katherine Richards said during cross-examination the house did not smell, she cleaned up after the dogs. Her testimony contradicted the testimony of the animal control officers about the state of the home during their Jan 2 investigation.

Joseph Richards has moved out of his mother's home and is now living in Baltimore, MD. He was sentenced to 13 consecutive 90-day jail terms but jail time was suspended, he is on 18 months of supervised probation.

Neighborhood Map

For more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.

Back to Top

Add this case to:

Del.icio.us

|

Digg

|

Furl

|

References

The Baltimore Sun - Feb 26, 2002

« MD State Animal Cruelty Map

Not sure what these icons mean? Click here.

Note: Classifications and other fields should not be used to determine what specific charges the suspect is facing or was convicted of - they are for research and statistical purposes only. The case report and subsequent updates outline the specific charges. Charges referenced in the original case report may be modified throughout the course of the investigation or trial, so case updates, when available, should always be considered the most accurate reflection of charges.

For more information regarding classifications and usage of this database, please visit the database notes and disclaimer.