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Case #9786 Rating: 5.0 out of 5
Kitten slammed against wall, killed during fight
Lorain, OH (US)Incident Date: Sunday, Oct 8, 2006
County: Lorain
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Brandon Bollin
A Lorain man is accused of killing his girlfriend's new kitten by slamming it against a wall because he was angry she adopted it, according to a Lorain police report.
Brandon Bollin, 19, 5000 W. Erie Ave., was arrested for domestic violence and cruelty to animals on the evening of Oct 8, after his 21-year-old girlfriend told police Bollin had kicked the kitten's cage during an argument, slapped her in the face and then removed the kitten from the cage and slammed it against a wall, breaking its neck, the report said.
Bollin pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 180 days in jail for domestic violence and 90 days for animal cruelty, according to Lorain Municipal Court documents.
Bollin's girlfriend, who is pregnant with Bollin's child, told police he was upset she had adopted the kitten -- a gift for her 4-year-old daughter. The kitten died from a broken neck, according to the report.
She said Bollin hit her again before throwing the kitten's body into the woods near the trailer the couple shared. Bollin returned and threw a butcher knife into the wall, the report said.
The police report said Bollin showed ''signs of aggression'' when police attempted to arrest him, and an officer used a Taser stun gun to subdue him.
Police were unable to locate the kitten's body, and Bollin could not remember where he had thrown it, the report said.
Friendship Animal Protective League Executive Director David McClelland said there is often a connection between those who abuse animals and people.
''People who are willing to abuse animals tend to be willing to abuse people,'' McClelland said. ''Without intervention, people that are abusing animals frequently cause problems for humans.
''Some will ask, Why do you spend so much time and research working on an animal abuse when there are people hurting?''' McClelland said. ''What the studies have been finding and what people who have done this work have come to believe and come to understand is that people abuse animals first and then people later. In this case, they did it at the same time.''
McClelland said his agency investigates about 50 cases of reported animal abuse or neglect each month; most of the cases involve neglect.
He said they sometimes can work with the animal owners to help them, and in some cases they seize the animals and request prosecution.
''Some people are just clueless and some people are making legitimate mistakes,'' he said, noting that in other cases of animal endangerment the league will request prosecution.
He said younger animals can be more vulnerable because of their smaller size.
''Young kittens and puppies are babies,'' McClelland said. References« OH State Animal Cruelty Map
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