Dog killed, nearly decapitated
Macon, GA (US)

Incident Date: Friday, May 19, 2006
County: Bibb

Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted

Defendant/Suspect: Jeffery Paul Jones

Case Updates: 6 update(s) available

A Macon man accused of killing and nearly decapitating a mixed-breed bulldog was arrested on a charge of aggravated animal cruelty on the afternoon of Aug 2.

Jeffery Paul Jones, 42, of 3557 Napier Ave., said he was avenging the death of his chickens when he killed the 9-year-old dog named Emax, Macon police Sgt. Tracey Brazee said.

In a statement to police, Jones admitted killing the animal and likened it to "pest control," Brazee said.

According to the arrest warrant, the dog was killed sometime between 6 p.m. May 19 and 8:30 a.m. May 20 near Jones' former home at 178 Hill St., between Walnut Street and Riverside Drive near downtown Macon.

Neighbor Marty Willett said he buried the dog, but authorities asked to exhume the dog's body for evidence.

When Willett first found the dog's body, he discovered the head was cut down the middle between the eyes, Willett said.

"We were horrified to see the blood trail down the street and around the houses," Willett said.

The dog belonged to Willett's friend, Otis Redding III, son of Macon musical legend Otis Redding, who died in 1969.

Emax had a bad hip, hobbled on one leg and rarely ventured from the yard.

Redding said his friends sometimes called Emax "Mr. Pitiful" - an apparent tribute to one of his father's songs.

"This really bothered me, man. That was pretty brutal," said Redding, a local music producer and performer. "He was my dog, but he was a neighborhood dog."

Willet said he doubted Redding's dog could have killed the chickens.

"It's so sad because Max was such an old dog," Willett said. "He was on his last leg almost literally, and he was so brutally killed. He was a pussycat. He was not a pit bull."

Jones recently moved from his Hill Street house to Napier Avenue, Brazee said. He also set animal traps in his backyard after the death of his chickens, Brazee said.

Keeping chickens inside the city limits is a violation of a city ordinance, but so is letting dogs run freely, Brazee said.

According to the state Department of Corrections Web site, Jones served time for a Fulton County burglary in 1993.

Redding said he got Emax as a 3-month-old puppy from a friend in Dodge County and named him after his new Emax keyboard.

The dog had been abused as a pup and was skittish around people, Redding said.

"He was a wimp. He was going blind. He was limping around," Willett said. "But he was Otis' life partner. He was his friend."

Case Updates

References

« GA State Animal Cruelty Map
« More cases in Bibb County, GA

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