CONVICTED (2023) | Lewis Hudson, born 9 June 2000, of Crispin Road, Netherley, Liverpool L27 7BE – tortured his girlfriend’s kitten over eight months by shooting her, scalding her in the shower and covering her in bleach before beating her to death.
During an eight-month campaign of terror, Lewis Hudson subjected the kitten, known as Binx to multiple sadistic attacks, culminating in her horrific death in August 2022.
The appalling catalogue of abuse began not long after Hudson had moved into a flat in Prescot with his now ex partner, Summer – who owned Binx – in August 2021.
In the months that followed Summer noticed several injuries on the cat. Hudson initially denied all knowledge, but soon began openly abusing Binx.
On one occasion he punched the kitten after she had scratched the furniture.
He also left her in the shower with the water running for long periods of time. Her owner found the distressed animal in the the bathroom, which was full of steam. She was crying and panting and her skin was hot to the touch.
In June 2022, Summer was watching funny cat videos on her phone when Hudson told her he had a funny video to show her. He then showed her a video of him stamping on Binx in steel toe cap boots. The cat was screaming and Hudson told her he would continue to do so if she did not do as she was told.
On another occasion Summer found Binx lying motionless and matted with blood in the bath after she had been hit with a shovel in the shower. This had been done with such force, the young animal’s teeth had been broken
Hudson would also shoot the cat with pellets from his BB gun. He even soaked them in cleaning fluids before firing them – and also hit Binx with a mop soaked in bleach “in the hope it would kill her”.
Summer tried to make arrangements for the cat to be rehomed but Hudson refused to allow this because he feared the injuries would be traced back to him and he wanted a dog.
In a disturbing series of text messages sent in August 2022, Hudson told his then partner that the cat was “going to get it” and he was “going to whack her with this shovel”.
He then told her “if you don’t get home now I am going to kill it”.
He finished by telling Summer “everyone in your family thinks I am a soft c because I am polite and quiet to them. I’ll f**** show them the real me if they want.”
She returned home to find Binx lying motionless. Her fur was matted with blood where she had been hit with the shower head.
Her fangs had been cleanly hit out of her mouth due to the force. Summer passed out when she saw the cat’s injuries while her mum called the police.
Hudson was arrested at the scene. When questioned by the police, Hudson claimed he “was all talk” and had kicked the cat away from him causing her to hit the TV stand.
In his witness statement RSPCA Inspector Anthony Joynes, who investigated for the charity, said: “Binx was wrapped in a bag, covered with a towel and contained within a cardboard box. I saw she had a number of fresh looking wounds around her nasal area and chin. I noted there were no obvious signs that might suggest Binx had been involved in a road traffic accident and her claws did not appear scuffed.
“The inside of her mouth was bloodied and I noted that both upper canines were broken. When handling Binx I noted a crisp packet type sound coming from the chest area which can be a sign of subcutaneous emphysema and indicative of chest trauma.”
Inspector Joynes arranged a post mortem examination. It showed that Binx’s body was covered with abrasions and bruises.
Her ribs were fractured and her lung was punctured, which was confirmed to be the cause of death. The court heard the cat had “suffered extensively”.
“Faeces and blood were reportedly seen in multiple areas of the premises, indicative that the cat was injured and mobile for a period of time immediately prior to death,” said a report by an independent veterinary expert.
“The most likely cause of death in this animal, otherwise healthy, was a traumatic and non- accidental pneumothorax. It is clear that the animal suffered multiple, different, blunt traumas and that the animal was conscious when this occurred.
“Furthermore, the healing fractured rib and the “aged” bleeding, support the existence of a previous traumatic event to the chest, many days ahead of the fatal set of injuries listed above.”
In mitigation, the court heard Hudson had experienced “traumatic events in his childhood”. He was supported by his dad in court and it is understood that his mother bakery owner Lisa Hudson and grandmother Marion Hudson are also standing by him..
Honour Judge Brian Cummings KC called the criminality “a sickening catalogue of cruelty to a defenceless animal”. He noted the totality of the offending and the prolonged and “sadistic” nature of the torture. In mitigation he took into account Hudson’s guilty pleas to two counts of animal cruelty and one of harassment relating to the text messages to Summer.
Judge Cummings jailed Hudson for two years and three months. He also imposed a restraining order that stops him contacting Summer for 10 years, as well as disqualifying him from keeping any animal for life.
Speaking after the sentencing hearing, inspector Joynes said: “This case involved stomach-churning and sadistic levels of cruelty over a prolonged period.
“The extreme suffering Binx endured at the hands of Hudson was used to hurt and punish Binx’s owner – who was obviously devastated by what happened to her beloved pet.
“This is one of the most extreme examples of physical and psychological suffering inflicted on an animal I’ve seen in 14 years with the RSPCA. This case involved nothing short of torture and is exactly why the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) bill was introduced in 2021 to increase sentencing powers for the most extreme cases of animal cruelty.”
The RSPCA worked in partnership with the police to bring the charges against Hudson.
Sentencing | two years and three months in jail and a lifetime ban. 10-year restraining order prohibiting him from contacting Summer.
Liverpool Echo
ITV News
St Helens Star
Liverpool Echo
Daily Mail
You sick sick scum… I am very tempted to turn up where you are. I will do to you what you done to that poor vulnerable cat… your waste of a tree. Rotten to the core….
Once again, too light of a sentence. We must pass laws that allow for much stiffer sentences, that reflect the severity and horror of these criminals actions.
No one would harm my pet more than once.I really don’t get why his foolish ” girlfriend ” put up with it. Some women really seem to go for this type.As for his useless family ,where were they when the poor cat was being tortured ? We are far too sympathetic to these people. Far to tolerant of them. Clearly they cannot function normally and need monitoring. He is a horrible,useless creep and its up to society to spend money to make sure he is never trusted with anything vulnerable.