CONVICTED (2019) | Samantha Kerrigan, born 1 September 1985, of Spencer Road, Londonderry BT47 – for the abandonment of a dog that was found hanging, alive, from a first-floor window of her home
Samantha Kerrigan is banned from keeping animals for ten years after leaving a dog to starve in an empty house
Samantha Kerrigan admitted causing unnecessary suffering to an animal on or before 1 October 2017.
The court heard that police were called to an address in Spencer Road after reports of a dog hanging from a first-floor window.
Members of the public got a ladder and rescued the unnamed female bull terrier.
Police forced entry into the flat and there was a strong smell of dog faeces.
The court heard the dog drank two litres of water in a very short space of time when given it by police and also ate food.
A vet determined that the dog was in danger of falling out the window and had been neglected with no access to water and being left alone in the flat.
The defendant contacted police to confirm ownership of the animal but failed to attend for interview.
The court was told the dog was euthanised a month later. The reason for this is unclear.
Defence solicitor, Maoiliosa Barr, said Kerrigan would class herself as an animal lover. He said that Kerrigan suffered from addiction issues and added she was “barely able to look after herself never mind anything else.”
The solicitor said that the dog was supposed to go to a friend of her partner but he had been sent to prison so she had taken the dog.
He said she was “very upset” when she heard what happened to the dog.
District Judge Barney McElholm said if it wasn’t for Kerrigan’s health she would have gone straight to prison.
Sentencing | eight months in prison suspended for two years. A 10-year ban on keeping any animals (expires November 2029).
CONVICTED (2019) | William Tatler, born c. 1973, of The Green, Idridgehay, Belper, Derbyshire DE56 2SJ, and Samuel Staniland, born c. 1987, of Hadleigh, Ipswich IP7 – for illegal fox hunting, with cubs being targeted.
Will Tatler (left) and Sam Staniland received pitiful fines after being filmed illegally hunting a fox
Joint master Will Tatler and huntsman Sam Staniland admitted hunting a wild mammal with dogs at Spath Covert, in Sutton-on-the-Hill, Derbyshire, on October 2, 2018.
The men were charged under the Hunting Act 2004, which says people who illegally hunt foxes can be fined but not sent to prison.
Sam Staniland has since left the hunt and moved from Sudbury to Hadleigh near Ipswich
It was the second time people from MSSH have been prosecuted for fox hunting. Two other men from the hunt – Johnny Greenall and Glen Morris – were caught illegally hunting fox cubs in 2011.
The case against four other associates of the hunt was dismissed.
Charges against assistant terrierman Sam Stanley were dropped
They were assistant terrier man Samuel Stanley, 25, of Burton Road, Needwood; terrier man Andrew Bull, 51, of Meynell Hunt Kennels, Ashbourne Road, Sudbury; whipper-in John ‘Ollie’ Finnegan, 33, of Gaddesby Lane, Kirby Bellars; and joint master Peter Southwell, 61, of Tolldish Lane, Great Haywood.
Terrierman Andy Bull also had the charges against him dropped
All six men had previously pleaded not guilty and were set to face trial, but Staniland and Tatler changed their plea to guilty before the trial.
The prosecution came after the League Against Cruel Sports filmed a fox being hunted and gave the footage to police.
League Against Cruel Sports investigator Roger Swaine captured the footage on 2 October 2018 at Spath Covert in Sutton-on-the-Hill, Derbyshire – the same area where two other men from the hunt were caught illegally hunting fox cubs in 2011.
Mr Swaine said they were “cub hunting”, which is when hounds are trained to hunt fox cubs.
“They were in the same place, it was the same hunt, doing exactly the same thing,” said Mr Swaine, who also filmed the previous footage.
He said he was “disappointed” by the fine.
“The problem is they are very well financed and they have a very good legal defence team,” he said.
“To receive just a fine for this barbaric activity shows the need to strengthen the Hunting Act, including the introduction of prison sentences,” he said.
Still from footage filmed by the League Against Cruel Sports showing a fox being illegally targeted by Meynell and South Staffordshire Hunt associates
In a statement issued through the Countryside Alliance, the Meynell and South Staffordshire Hunt said the Hunting Act was “a difficult and troublesome piece of legislation”.
“It is complex and open to misinterpretation,” the statement said.
“The Meynell and South Staffordshire Hunt regrets that in this case some individuals were unable to show that they had fulfilled all the conditions of the relevant exemption, as set out in Schedule 1 of the Act.
“The Hunt confirms that moving forward it will continue to operate within the law, utilising both artificial trails and the exemptions provided in the Act.”
Sentencing: fined £535 and ordered to pay £150 towards legal costs.
CONVICTED (2019) | Krisztina Kubovics, born 7 November 1985, of Finching Grove, Mirfield WF14 0LH – neglected her elderly Shih Tzu for so long the little dog had to have her eye and teeth removed.
Hungarian national Kubovics pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal and failing to take steps to ensure its needs were met.
The neglect was uncovered when a neighbour of Kubovics took the 16-year-old dog, known as Malua, to a qualified dog groomer.
The professional was so concerned she refused to groom her and contacted the RSPCA.
Andrew Davidson, prosecuting, said following her contact with the charity an inspector visited Kubovics’s home and took the dog away to be examined by a vet.
Malua had suffered as a result of chronic eye disease and overgrown claws
Mr Davidson added: “She talked about Malua’s coat being in an extremely poor condition with heavy matting.
“There was a problem with the left eye, overgrown claws and significant dental disease.
“The claws were extremely long with one puncturing the skin.
“Ultimately the eye had to be removed (and) the teeth were so long that a number had to be taken out.
“She said that Malua would have suffered as a result of the chronic eye disease and overgrown claws.
“It would have caused extreme discomfort and (she) would have expected the owner to notice and seek advice.
“The claws, particularly the one going into the skin, would have caused chronic and persistent pain and difficulty walking. The dental disease would have taken years to develop.”
When interviewed Kubovics admitted she hadn’t taken her dog to the groomers because she didn’t want her hair too short and, in any event, it would be difficult for anyone to touch her because she might bite.
She admitted that Malua’s nails were curling and that she tried to cut them herself with scissors because she couldn’t afford to have them done due to financial difficulties.
Sajid Majeed, mitigating, said that his client had experienced lots of difficulties in her life.
Mr Majeed said: “Ms Kubovics has dealt with things in her life not so well and this is one of them. The dog clearly hasn’t been cared for properly.”
Sentencing | community order with 10-day Rehabilitation Activity Order and 120 hours of unpaid work; ordered to pay £332 cost and charges. Banned from keeping dogs for five years (expires November 2024). Deprivation order on Malua.
CONVICTED (2019) | Amanda Jane Thorne, born c. 1978, of Little Skewes Farm, St Wenn, Bodmin PL30 5PS – neglected and starved more than two dozen horses.
Amanda Thorne starved and neglected 25 horses in one of worst cruelty cases the RSPCA has seen.
Mother-of-two Amanda Thorne had denied five charges of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal and one of ensuring that the needs of 25 horses were met.
But she was found guilty by the judge after a trial in her absence in October 2019.
All 25 horses suffered because they did not have clean accommodation, adequate food, a constant supply of fresh, clean drinking water, a dry lying area, adequate exercise or parasitic control.
Eight horses had overgrown hooves and four were malnourished because of Thorne’s neglect.
One was in need of veterinary care for a foot abscess, rain scald, lymphangitis, cellulitis and wounds.
One horse tragically died. The rest were taken by the RSPCA and stabled before being found permanent owners. They have made good recoveries.
Nigel Weller, for Thorne, said: “I would implore the court that she has learnt her lesson going through court proceedings.”
He added that the risk of her reoffending was low.
District Judge Diana Baker said: “Horses were starving to death, there were not being treated for their ailments. Their hooves were not being trimmed. They were in a pitiful state.
“You have shown no remorse for what happened and you blamed others. Concerned members of the public brought this matter to the attention of the RSPCA.
“One of the experts said that this could have been a whole lot worse if they had not brought the matter to their attention.”
She added that she had been considering sending farmworker Thorne straight to jail, but decided to suspend her six-month term for 12 months.
The court also heard that Thorne has problems with her mental health, which were exacerbated by the court case.
Speaking after sentencing RSPCA inspector Jo Pearson said the case was one of the cruellest she had ever seen. She thanked neighbours for alerting the charity to the horses’ plight and added: ” Without members of the public coming to us with the information, she would never have been brought before the courts”.
Sentencing | six-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months; 15-day Rehabilitation Activity Requirement; four-month tagging order; ordered to pay £15,000 towards the RSPCA’s costs. Banned from keeping equines for life.
CONVICTED (2019) | Elizabeth Mary O’Sullivan, born 21 May 1967, previously of Sandford Road, Moseley, Birmingham B13 (current address tbc) – starved her three cats to death.
This emaciated cat was found barely alive in Elizabeth O’Sullivan’s filthy flat in Moseley, Birmingham. Sadly he was too poorly to be saved.
Elizabeth O’Sullivan left her pets to die when she moved out of her ‘filthy’ flat.
The then 52-year-old moved from her home in February or March 2019, but it was up to three months before local authority housing officers discovered the pets.
The dismembered bodies of two cats were found on the living room floor, while a third was found barely alive on May 16, 2019.
The officers alerted the RSPCA to their horrific find and Inspector Jonathan Radcliffe was sent to the scene.
Two of the cats had died from dehydration and starvation, but a third was found collapsed in a critical condition having survived off the remains of his fellow pets.
He took the cat for emergency treatment but the vet made the decision to put the pet down to end his suffering.
O’Sullivan was traced to a nearby address ten days later and was arrested by police, though she failed to appear in court on two occasions.
She was tried and found guilty in her absence on November 15, 2019, of one animal welfare offence.
O’Sullivan was arrested two days later and brought before the court for sentencing on Monday, November 18, 2019.
Inspector Radcliffe said: “The flat was filthy and the remains of two dismembered cats were on the living room floor.
“There was also a cat which was barely alive collapsed nearby.
“It appears this cat had survived for weeks without food and water by eating the remains of the other two pets as they had died from starvation and dehydration.
“There was no food and water in the flat – but the toilet seat had been left up so the cats may have been able to drink from this, however, as they became weaker they would have been unable to access this water.
“It is incomprehensible to think the suffering these pets must have endured and how terrified they must have been for such a long period of time before dying of starvation.
“It must have been awful for the remaining cat to watch as the others died in front of him and then he was forced to eat their remains in a desperate attempt to survive. Sadly this cat was too ill to recover from his ordeal.”
Sentencing | jailed for 20 weeks; ordered to pay a £150 victim surcharge. Banned from keeping all animals for life.
CONVICTED (2019) | Allan King, born 5 April 1985, of St Andrew’s Court, Bellshill ML4 1FD – swung a dog by the ears before kicking her repeatedly.
King grabbed the mongrel before dropping her on the ground. He then struck her back with his knee and repeatedly kicked her. The attack left a shocked eyewitness ‘physically sick’ after she watched him repeatedly strike the ‘cowering and trembling’ animal in Bellshill, Lanarkshire.
The dog was heard whimpering and was seen shaking with her tail between her legs as King attacked her.
When he was asked to stop his attack, the thug shouted ‘Fuck off’ at the woman. Passing police intervened and King was caught after fleeing the scene.
The thug, who was supposed to be looking after the dog, said he hit the animal because she would not walk properly.
King admitted causing the dog unnecessary suffering and acting in a threatening or abusive manner in June 2019.
Depute fiscal Morag McClintock said: “At around 11.15am the witness was on the main street in Bellshill where the accused had the dog off the ground with its ears and was swinging the dog with them.
“He then dropped the dog on the ground.
“The witness asked the accused to stop and leave the dog alone but he shouted ‘fuck off’ and while this was going on police in uniform could hear the shouting.
“The police saw him walking towards them and kept a watch on him and observed the accused strike the dog three times with considerable force.
“It was seen cowering from the accused, sinking lower to the ground and trembling.
“When the accused saw the police he let go of the lead and ran off.
“He was asked to stop but continued running and a foot chase took place with other officers eventually finding him.
“The accused said ‘look I’m sorry I kicked my dog. I’m sorry but the dog was not walking’.
“The civilian witness advised she had never seen anything like it and that his actions had made her physically sick.”
The dog was later handed into Bellshill police station.
Jack Grant, defending, said: “This wasn’t his dog but his partner’s who had been away on a long weekend and he had been given the dog to look after and this took place on the last day he had it.
“His actions on that day were deplorable but he says he was frustrated and embarrassed by the dog and did what he did and for that he is extremely remorseful.
“He is prepared to accept that a custodial sentence may well be in the court’s mind but I ask that there is some sort of alternative imposed.”
Sheriff Vincent Smith said: “In all of the circumstances I’m going to deal with this by way of a community payback order with a requirement you carry out unpaid work.”
Sentencing | ordered to carry out 210 hours of unpaid work. Banned from keeping any animals for 12 months (expired).
CONVICTED (2019) | Heather Jones, born 28 May 1970, of King Edward Street, Glenrothes KY7 6AW – left three horses to starve in a field.
Heather Jones of Glenrothes, Fife, left horses to starve in a field
A horse named Zante was in an emaciated state after Heather Jones failed to provide enough food for him. He and two other horses kept by Jones in a field in Coaltown of Balgonie, were handed over to the Scottish SPCA. The animals have since been rehomed.
Jones was said to have been a keen horsewoman, having kept horses for years and competed in shows around the country.
At Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court she was reprimanded by Sheriff Grant McCulloch for failing to care properly for Zante.
Sheriff McCulloch also expressed concern for three dogs she keeps and requested further information from the animal charity which investigated the case before he decides how to deal with her.
Jones admitted causing Zante unnecessary suffering between December 10, 2018, and January 10, 2019, by failing to provide adequate nutrition leading to him becoming emaciated.
Her denial of causing unnecessary suffering to two other horses, Toruk and Smith, was accepted by the Crown.
Sheriff McCulloch told Jones: “It’s clear that for whatever reason for a period you did not properly care for one of your horses.
“You did, through inaction or improper action, cause Zante to suffer unnecessarily.”
He said that fortunately Zante’s body condition had improved since being taken from Jones’ care and he was now thriving.
Solicitor Alistair Burleigh said Jones had suffered from mental health issues and had been “completely and utterly isolated” when the offence occurred.
He said: “She knows her failures were quite serious. She is deeply ashamed of how this came about.”
Mr Burleigh said Jones had been highly dedicated to her horses, taking them to events all over. He said: “All that has gone by the wayside.
“She took the appropriate steps to sign these horses over to the SSPCA and all three of them have been rehomed.
“It’s obvious she has a huge void in her life as a result of not having any horses.”
Sentencing | 12-week structured deferred sentence to allow Jones to engage with psychiatry services and for a further report from the Scottish SPCA. Unfortunately the outcome was never reported.
#MostEvil | Reece Reed (aka Reece Howard-Reed), born c. 2000, most recently of Club Street, Kettering NN16 8RP – mutilated a prize-winning miniature horse by stabbing him 20 times; ripped the wings off three chickens
Farmyard prowler and animal abuser Reece Reed was caught naked from the waist down in a chicken coop
Reed, who has previous convictions for burglary and vehicle theft, attacked the animals in April 2018 after breaking into a Wellingborough farm. The farm owner was alerted by a burglar alarm at 07:30 a.m.
Prosecutor Priya Bakshi told the court: “He ran to the summer house to investigate. There he found a shovel, and saw one window had been pried open and another had been smashed.
“He peered through the window. There, he saw a man with a six-inch kitchen knife inside the chicken coop.”
The farmer scared off the armed man – Reed, who was naked from the waist down – before searching his stables to see if any animals had been hurt.
Victim Sol suffered appalling knife injuries during a sadistic attack by Reece Reed
It was then that he found his daughter’s prize-winning miniature show horse Sol. His back legs and rear had been stabbed 20 times and he was bleeding heavily.
Additionally, Reed had cut the wings off of three chickens. They had to be put down.
In court, the judge heard how Sol was a prize winner worth over £3,000 and was on track to becoming a champion show horse. But following the attack, Sol was rendered unfit to compete ever again.
In a victim impact statement read out in court, Sol’s owner said: After I learned that Sol had been hurt I was devastated and heartbroken.
“Sol was and is my best friend and he will always be part of the family.”
Reed later pleaded guilty to the offence.
His defence barrister, Osmun Munir, said the 19-year-old was “remorseful and expresses sympathy for the family”.
But in sentencing, Judge Fowler was unable to jail Reed for more than two months over the mutilations – because the attacks were charged as “criminal damage” rather than, for example, animal cruelty.
He told Reed: “This episode can only be described as wholly despicable. The charges that you face today do not reflect the wickedness of your behaviour.
“This has been treated as if it were criminal damage against two inanimate objects. It isn’t. And it is in my view and error that ought to be corrected.”
CONVICTED (2019) | Robert A Black, born 29/08/1968, of Parsons Close, Newbury RG14 5LU – captured on CCTV punching his dog repeatedly.
Career criminal Robert Black, who has multiple previous convictions for shoplifting, was found guilty of one count of causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal after CCTV caught him punching his dog five times.
In the video Black can be seen viciously attacking the animal in Victoria Park in Newbury.
After he struck the dog five times in the face, he put the dog on a lead and walked off through the park.
Police were called and arrested Black.
They also took both his dogs under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Both have since been rehomed. The animal he punched was not injured in the attack.
Investigating officer, PC David Burleigh said: “Black demonstrated significant cruelty to his dog by punching it several times in the face, with no concern for its welfare.
“This behaviour is clearly totally unacceptable for a pet owner and I am pleased that not only has he received a prison sentence for his actions, but that he has been banned from owning animals for the next 10 years.
“We take reports such as these seriously and will look to investigate and take action against anyone who carries out this type of offence.”
Sentencing: jailed for 22 weeks; ordered to pay a £115 victim surcharge. Banned from owning animals for 10 years (expires November 2029).
KentLive reports that Black’s custodial sentence has been reduced to just 17 weeks following an appeal.
Black’s lawyer, Steve Molloy of Charles Hoile Solicitors in Newburym argued that his client’s behaviour “was his rather clumsy attempt to separate [the dogs] adding that: “There’s no suggestion the dogs were undernourished or routinely ill-treated. This was, in my submission, a one-off incident. It’s not in the league of dogfighting or dog baiting.”
He suggested the district judge who sentenced Black had erred in law by categorising the offence as “higher culpability”.
Molloy conceded that his client had been subject to a suspended prison sentence at the time, but said this was for a totally unrelated offence.
He concluded: “Mr Black has now served a custodial sentence of some weeks and, in my respectful submission, the proper sentence would be one of time served.”
That would have allowed Black to walk free and spend Christmas with his partner, who accompanied him to court.
But Judge Richard Wheeler pointed to Black’s 288 previous convictions for offences including battery, burglary, theft and being drunk and disorderly.
He said Black’s actions had breached the terms of a suspended prison sentence order.
Judge Wheeler added: “I’m perfectly satisfied it was correct in law to activate the five-week suspended sentence and to add a consecutive sentence for the current offence.”
He told Black: “You committed this offence less than a month after the suspended sentence and you have a lengthy and extremely depressing record.
“But I’m persuaded to allow the appeal to this extent: while the five blows can be characterised as a deliberate and gratuitous attempt to cause harm to the dog, it was lesser harm, not greater harm. There was no prolonged suffering.”
The judge ruled that 12 weeks’ imprisonment, rather than 18, should have been added consecutively to the five-week suspended sentence, reducing the total to 17 weeks rather than 22.
CONVICTED (2019) | Brendan Murphy, born c. 1967, of Nantwich, Cheshire – stabbed his dog twice before throwing her into the canal to drown.
The body of Japanese Akita Tara was seen floating in the Shropshire Union Canal in October 2018
Murphy, who lives on a barge on the Shropshire Union Canal, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to his poorly Akita dog , Tara, by stabbing her twice, chaining a heavy weight around her body and dumping her in the canal to drown.
The court heard how Tara’s body was seen floating in the Shropshire Union canal at Nantwich on October 6, 2018, and police were called. Officers then alerted the RSPCA
Inspector Andy Harris investigated and took the dog’s body to the vets, where a post mortem examination revealed she had been suffering from a lung disease for a number of weeks.
The vet also found she had been stabbed twice before her body entered the canal. Due to the state of decomposition her body had been in the water for about three weeks.
Some patches of fur missing on Tara’s body suggested the propeller of a barge had come into contact with her under water and this had freed her body from the item used to weigh her down.
Her microchip revealed she was owned by Murphy so Inspector Harris visited his address and he admitted Tara was his.
During interview, Murphy admitted he was aware Tara was unwell with a lung condition and had sought veterinary advice but could not afford the treatment.
He said she had died on the canal barge and so he buried her in woodland near Crewe where he was moored at the time.
He said in interview that he went to the spot where he buried her to pay his respects a few times but claimed about two weeks later her body had been dug up and said he had no idea how she ended up in the canal.
As it was suspected Tara had drowned, samples of her bone marrow were sent away for forensic testing – the first time this technique has been used in an RSPCA prosecution.
The test showed that Tara died from drowning.
In a witness statement, an expert vet told the court: “It is my expert opinion that Tara was suffering as a result of underlying ill health at the time of her death.
“It is further my expert opinion that Tara was alive when she was placed in the canal and that she was deliberately anchored down with a length of chain.
“The cause of death in Tara is hence in my expert opinion drowning.”
Inspector Harris said: “Poor Tara had a lung disease which was left untreated and therefore she was left suffering will this illness for a number of weeks.
“She was then stabbed in the abdomen twice before being thrown alive into the canal, where she drowned.
“It is upsetting to think about what she must have endured during her final moments.”
Sentencing | 10-week jail sentence suspended for 12 months; ordered to pay a total of £415 in costs and charges. Banned from keeping animals for 10 years (expires November 2029).
