Monthly Archives: December 2013

Cats, Dogs, Multiple Species, Serial Animal Abusers

High Heaton, Newcastle Upon Tyne: John and Lesley McKie

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CONVICTED (2013) | John McKie, born c. 1953, and wife Lesley McKie, born c. 1955, both of Thropton Terrace, Newcastle upon Tyne NE7 7HT – caused extreme suffering to their elderly pet dog by failing to treat his multiple health issues.

The McKies’ German Shepherd, named Prince, had been unable to walk for weeks, was severely underweight and had filthy, matted fur and urine burns when RSPCA officers discovered him.

The 12-year-old dog was in such poor condition that, after an examination, a vet immediately put him to sleep.

The McKies pleaded guilty to a charge each of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal and failing to meet the needs of an animal.

Judith Curry, prosecuting, told the court Prince was in such a bad way, his skin was infected with maggots, which only usually happens on the bodies of dead animals.

She said: “On August 23 [2013], RSPCA officer Claire Hunt attended the property and spoke to Lesley McKie.

“She was taken to the back door where there was a dog lying, unable to use its back legs. He also had a large urine scold on his left hip, which was bright red and hot to touch.

“The smell coming from the dog was overpowering. His coat was matted and wet to touch. There were also a number of flies on his back end.”

Prince was taken to a nearby vet, where he was found to weigh just 24.2kg, 10kg less than the average weight for a dog of his size.

Ms Curry added: “The vet also found he had no awareness in his back legs at all. And, once his matted hair was parted, she found a mass of maggots.

“Usually, they are found feeding on dead animals.

“The maggots had eaten away tissue and they were living underneath the skin.

“Prince would have been suffering and he was suffering unnecessarily.”

The McKies had owned Prince for about 12 years.

The court heard Prince had started to become ill and the couple had struggled to pay for treatment.

Magistrates were told Lesley McKie used Lavender wipes to clean Prince as they had no hot water or a bath downstairs.

Mark Humble, defending, said the couple had never had problems with him before but had struggled financially when his health started to deteriorate.

He said: “Sadly, it was towards the end of the dog’s life when he became infirm and they found it difficult to cope and keep the animal clean.

“They didn’t intend to cause the dog any suffering. I think their limited financial means contributed to the problems.

“They had contacted the PDSA but believed they weren’t on the correct benefits to receive help from them.

“The second time they contacted the PDSA they were told they would treat Prince but they had to bring him to the surgery, which they had no means of doing.”

Sentencing: each was ordered to pay £289 in fines, costs and charges. Banned from keeping animals for 10 years (expires December 2023).

Chronicle Live

Update July 2021

Both McKies were hauled back to court by the RSPCA for breaching their ban although only John McKie was convicted and sentenced.

In July 2019, the RSPCA was tipped off by a concerned member of the public who informed the charity that McKies had breached their ban.

Inspector Kirsty Keogh-Laws was sent to the McKies’ home to investigate and found three cats inside the property.

The cats were taken into RSPCA care.

Mrs Keogh-Laws said: “I advised that as he was banned from keeping animals they would remain with the RSPCA while the animal welfare charity looked at a possible prosecution.”

Two days later, McKie was found to have another cat at the property and she too was taken into RSPCA care.

Three of the cats were rehabilitated and have since been rehomed.

However, an elderly cat had a series of serious health complications and a vet made the decision to put her to sleep to end her suffering.

John McKie pleaded guilty to breaching an animal disqualification order.

He was given another 10-year ban on keeping animals (expires July 2031) and was ordered to pay a £120 fine, £400 costs and a £32 victim surcharge.

Magistrates also warned the pensioner that any further breaches could see him facing up to six months behind bars.

Mrs Keogh-Laws added: “We rely on the public to notify us of any breach of bans and I would always urge them to report matters like this to us so we can intervene.”

Chronicle Live

animal fighting / baiting, badger baiting, Dogs, hunting with dogs, Organised Animal Crime, Wildlife Crime / Bloodsports

Castleford, West Yorkshire: Stephen Sankey and Devonn Smith

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CONVICTED (2013) | badger baiters Stephen Sankey, born 15 June 1981, and Devonn Smith, born 16 September 1992, previously of St Andrews Road, Castleford WF10 2NF*

Sankey and Smith were fined £520 for interfering with a badger sett in the Aberford area of Leeds. The couple were found guilty at the end of a one-day trial .

They were arrested under the 1992 Badgers Act on May 23, 2013, when police discovered an abandoned vehicle at the side of a road and then found the culprits digging into a known badger sett in nearby woodland.

A terrier was also found within the sett wearing a locator collar which allows the dog to be found underground by his or her owner.

Spades were recovered from the scene.

Sentencing | fined £520. No other penalties.

Source: Yorkshire Post (article removed).

*Additional Information

2022 address for Stephen Sankey:

LANCASTER STREET
CASTLEFORD
WF10 2NP

Dogs

Whitehawk, Brighton: Derek Goldsmith

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CONVICTED (2013) | Derek Goldsmith, born c. 1949, of Kingfisher Court, Albourne Close, Brighton BN2 5FX – neglected his dog so badly her front paws dropped off

Neglected dog Florence - as found and following treatment
Elderly Florence also had infections in her eyes and ears and her teeth were so rotten that they had to be taken out.

Shih-tzu cross Florence was found in an appalling state when RSPCA inspectors visited the home of Derek Goldsmith after receiving a tip-off.

The 14-year-old pet had more than 1.5kg of matted fur and when it was clipped it was discovered she had lost her front paws through lack of circulation.

In addition, her eyes and ears were infected, she was suffering from gastroenteritis and her teeth were so rotten they all had to be removed by the vet.

Goldsmith admitted failing to provide Florence with veterinary care for her severed front paws and failing to get treatment for her severe dental disease.

RSPCA inspector Tony Woodley said: “This was one of the most shocking cases of long-term neglect I have witnessed in my 17 years as an inspector.

“As well as her missing paws she had to have more than 1.5kg of matted, encrusted fur removed.

“I am satisfied that the sentence reflects the severity of this neglect and pleased that a ban on keeping animals has been handed out” he added.

Florence went on to make a remarkable recovery.

Vets worked hard to treat her conditions and students at a local college even created a harness on wheels to help her get around without paws.

She was also rehomed with a new owner.

Sentencing: four-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months; community integration order; costs of £2,301. Banned from keeping animals for five years (expired 2018)

Daily Record
LatestBrighton

Dogs, Violent and Sadistic Pet Abusers, Worst of the Worst

Montrose, Angus: Kevin Hutcheon

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CONVICTED (2013) | Kevin Hutcheon, born 26/01/1989, of Golden Acre, Montrose DD10 0EX – repeatedly stabbed a dog in the street

Kevin Hutcheon pictured outside court
Kevin Hutcheon adds animal cruelty to his long list of criminal convictions

Violent career criminal Kevin Hutcheon left the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, named Rocco, “lifeless” after claiming the dog had bitten his foot.

When police arrived at the scene, they found the dog with multiple injuries and covered in blood. Despite his wounds, Rocco survived the attack.

Sergeant James Robertson told the court that he and a colleague found the badly injured dog lying in Victoria Street, Montrose on 9 August 2013.

He said: “When I arrived the dog was heavily covered in blood – it was soaked in blood and lifeless.”

PC Rhiannon McDonald, who also attended the incident, said Hutcheon, who did not own the dog, had said the animal attacked him.

She said: “[Hutcheon] had two small puncture wounds on his foot – he said he had been bitten on the foot and that he had stabbed the dog twice because he had been bitten.

“I had seen the dog a few times before in the street – he was always very happy and friendly and let you pat him.”

A search of Hutcheon’s home later found a blood-soaked knife sitting on a baby’s high chair.

Kevin Hutcheon pictured outside court

Hutcheon, giving evidence in his own defence, said he “loved animals” – but had been left with no choice but to stab the dog.

He said: “He was trying to take a snap at either my face or my neck. I gave it a kick and the dog went for my foot.

“I love animals. He attacked me and wouldn’t let me go.”

Earlier, a vet told the trial that the dog would have died within an hour if he had not received treatment for a series of wounds, which included a cut to his jugular vein.

A jury convicted Hutcheon of causing a protected animal unnecessary suffering by repeatedly stabbing it with a knife, contrary to the Animal Health and Welfare Act, and being in possession of a knife in Victoria Street following the attack.

He was acquitted of charges of threatening two men and a woman at the property, headbutting the woman and being in possession of a knife.

Sentencing: jailed for 12 months on the animal welfare charge and 21 months on the knife charge. Sentences were concurrent.

BBC News

Animal Abandonment, Dogs, Lifers, Pet Profiteering, puppy farmers / traffickers, kennels, backyard breeders, Worst of the Worst

Newbold Verdon/Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire: Sam, Hazel and Damon Hessin

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CONVICTED (2013) | Sam Hessin, born 15/11/1973, and daughter Hazel Hessin, born 08/12/1994, both of Cadle Street, Leicester LE9 9PA, plus son Damon Hessin (aka Damon Taylor), born 02/07/1991, now of Belvoir Street, Melton Mowbray LE13 1QA – left eight puppies to starve to death in a room in their home

The vile Hessin family from Leicestershire, who locked puppies in a kitchen and left them to starve to death
The vile Hessin family from Leicestershire, who locked puppies in a room and left them to starve to death

This wicked bunch of reprobates are the Hessin family previously all of Melton Mowbray.

Together they are responsible for the death by starvation of eight Staffordshire bull terrier puppies.

The trio barricaded the helpless dogs inside the kitchen of their family home at Wren Close, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, and over the next few weeks ignored their desperate howls.

Some of the dogs survived longer by eating the others. Neighbours heard the puppies’ cries but did precisely nothing until it was too late.

Sam and Hazel Hessin
Hazel Hessin with mother Sam Hessin

On 1 May 2013 RSPCA officers raided the Hessins’ home after a tip-off from the family’s landlady. Investigators were shocked to find the rotting remains of the dogs, including two puppies’ SKULLS, in the kitchen.

Prosecutors told magistrates: ‘When the inspector walked into the kitchen the smell was rancid and putrid, to her horror she saw the puppies were in advanced stages of decomposition, on a urine stained bed.

‘Dog faeces was several inches thick and everything in the kitchen was in a total state of disarray.

‘The vet estimated the puppies would have been about six months old when they died. The sight and smell of them was shocking and deeply distressing.’

Damon Hessin, who is now known as Damon Taylor
Damon Hessin is now known as Damon Taylor

Despite the horrific outcome of their actions, the sentence passed on the vile family by Leicester Magistrates’ Court in December 2013 was typically lenient.

Damon and Hazel Hessin were both banned from keeping animals for life and given suspended sentences Their mother was given an 18-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work and told to pay an £80 victim surcharge. She was also banned from keeping animals for life.

SWNS
RSPCA