CONVICTED (2021) | Jonathan Daly born c. 1973, of Wardle Crescent, Leek ST13 5PW and Emma Stone, born c. 1991, of Whitfield Avenue, Newcastle-under-Lyme ST5 2JQ – for animal welfare offences relating to poorly sheep.
Emma Stone
Lorry driver Jonathan Daly pleaded guilty to one offence for transporting animals in a way that is likely to cause harm or undue suffering.
Daly was fined £400 and ordered to pay costs of £1723 for the transportation of four sheep.
Shepherdess Emma Stone, who operates from Racecourse Farm, Three Mile Lane, Whitmore, Newcastle-under-Lyme also pleaded guilty to the same offence.
She also pleaded guilty for an offence of permitting unfit animals to be exposed for sale in a market, in this case five sheep.
Stone was fined £415 and ordered to pay costs of £1723.
The case relates to a consignment of 53 sheep (36 ewes & 17 lambs) presented for sale at Leek Livestock Auctions Ltd at Barnsfield’s Junction Road on 21st July 2020.
Stone is employed to look after a flock of approximately 700 breeding ewes.
Jonathan Daly was the livestock haulier who transported the sheep.
Whilst carrying out a routine inspection at Leek Livestock Auctions on the day, Animal Health Officers from Staffordshire County Council’s Trading Standards service identified that five of the sheep were unfit for sale in a market.
Due to their ill health, four of the sheep had to be put down at the site and the fifth was taken to a local slaughterhouse.
The court stated that the offences were serious and that both parties made errors of judgement with decisions that could have been done differently.
CONVICTED (2021) | Tina Price, born 22 May 1968, pf the Caravan Centre, Cemetery Road, Silverdale, Newcastle-under-Lyme ST5 6PJ and William Braddock, born 7 November 1975, of McNeill Avenue in Crewe – mistreated horses in their care
Tina Price was prosecuted alongside Will Braddock in relation to groups of starved and neglected horses
Gypsies William Braddock and Tina Price were prosecuted after an investigation by the RSPCA and Staffordshire Police found they mistreated horses in a field between Trentmill Road and Kettering Road in Hanley, Staffordshire.
The investigation, which took place in January 2020, found a number of horses that were underweight and in a poor condition.
Eight horses living in the field did not have proper treatment for lice infestations, rain scald, or hoof care.
Braddock, who owned the animals, also failed to provide dental care and parasite control.
Braddock admitted failing to meet the needs of the eight horses and was given a suspended prison sentence and five-year ban on keeping all animals.
As part of the investigation, RSPCA inspector Laura Baker also visited a field in Agger Hill, Madeley Heath, where two more horses were identified as having problems.
Price admitted causing unnecessary suffering to an animal by failing to report lameness to the vet. She was given a community sentence and four-year ban on keeping any animals.
Luckily a majority of the horses made a full recovery and have now been made available for re-homing.
Speaking after the case, Ms Baker said: “This was a complex operation, involving a large number of horses – and we’re really grateful to World Horse Welfare for their support, including taking on a number of the animals. It’s another great example of what we can do together for animal welfare.
“Sadly, this case reminds us what can go wrong for horses if they are neglected and not cared for properly.
“Unchecked breeding, a lack of worming and insufficient food supplies during such cold conditions were all at play here.
“We’re just relieved we were able to intervene, secure justice for these animals and help many of these horses to go onto a second chance of happiness.”
Sentencing:
Braddock – 12-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months; 56-day curfew; 20 rehabilitation days; £595 fines and charges. Five-year ban (expires May 2026).
Price – 12-month community order with 40 hours of unpaid work and 20 rehabilitation days; £595 costs and charges. Banned from keeping any animal for four years (expires May 2025).
CONVICTED (2020) |Daniel Christopher Lahey, born 10/04/1991, of Duke Place, Silverdale, Newcastle-under-Lyme ST5 6PE* but with links to Wolverhampton – locked a rescue dog in a shed to starve to death
Cruel chef Daniel Lahey left rescue Staffy Rex to starve to death – after locking him in a shed
Callous Daniel Lahey, who has a long list of previous criminal convictions including at least one for domestic violence, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to Staffordshire bull terrier Rex.
Lahey had provided a foster home for the dog, after completing a charity’s home checks. But months later charity volunteers discovered Rex’s starved body in a black bag.
The chef told RSPCA investigators that he had not buried the rescue dog because he could not afford a spade.
North Staffordshire Justice Centre heard Lahey took Rex home on December 1, 2018. For the first few months, Lahey sent the charity regular updates, including photographs and videos of Rex’s progress. But the charity was later unable to contact the defendant and then received a call from a relative to collect Rex’s body on April 2, 2010.
Vets discovered that the rescue dog was emaciated – weighing just 12.35 kilograms. A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as emaciation.
The vet’s report stated: “There is a strong possibility that he was left without food for a few days. During this time he would be hungry, potentially cold at night as he was confined to a shed, and possibly psychologically distressed as scratch marks were found in the shed along with soiling.”
Lahey told the RSPCA that Rex had struggled to put on weight and that he had left the dog with someone else when he went away for a few weeks last March. He said he returned to find Rex dead.
Following the case, RSPCA inspector Charlotte Melvin said: “It is horrendous to think of the suffering which poor Rex went through during the period leading up to his death.
“The vet’s report states he had been left in the shed for a number of days at least as scratch marks could be found near the door as Rex had desperately tried to get out.
“There is never an excuse not to feed a pet or seek veterinary treatment – if people are in need of help there are also plenty of animal charities that can help or in this case the animal rescue centre where Rex had come from would have taken him back.”
A spokesman for Pebbles Legacy, which placed Rex with Lahey, said: “We are so upset about what has happened to Rex and the suffering he must have endured. He was fostered by Lahey so he could have allowed us to take him back at any time if he was struggling but there was no indication of this at all.
“We carried out a number of home checks on Lahey which he passed and he sent us weekly updates, including videos and photographs, showing how well Rex was doing. There was even one of him looking so happy playing in the snow.
“We have no idea why this changed and it was awful to go the property and find a dog who we had cared for dead in such awful circumstances.
“It has been terribly upsetting for all our volunteers.”
Sentencing: ordered to pay a total of £850. Banned from keeping animals for life.
CONVICTED (2017) | Lisa Platt (aka Lisa Bagguley), born 5 January 1974, of Prosser Street, Wolverhampton WV10 9AR, and son Kyle Platt, born 12 September 1995, now of St Patrick’s Drive, in Newcastle-under-Lyme – left their three pet dogs neglected and starving in a filthy back yard for at least three months.
Three starving dogs were rescued from a miserable existence with then owners Lisa and Kyle Platt: Staffordshire bull terriers King and Ace and a German Shepherd called Sasha. Red and white Staffy Ace was so poorly that he was 24 hours from death. Almost every bone in his body was clearly visible and protruding.
24 hours from death: Staffy King has since recovered from his previous owners’ cruel neglect.
The other dogs were also underweight and GSD Sasha was also suffering from an untreated skin problem that had caused her to lose fur.
Lisa Platt and son Kyle Platt, who has since moved to Newcastle-under-Lyme, both pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to Ace and King. Lisa Platt also admitted an additional charge of failing to ensure that the needs of Sasha were met.
Staffy King was also extremely underweight
RSPCA inspector Dawn Burrell, who investigated the case, said: “Ace was skin and bones when he was rescued – he was incredibly docile and he was dying in front of us. He was unable to stand and had to be carried into the vet’s. He was so underweight that the vet said if he’d been left another 24 hours, he would be dead.
In addition to being underweight GSD Sasha had a painful untreated skin condition.
“King and Sasha were also in a bad way. They were living in horrible conditions outside in a back yard, which was completely covered in faeces. Put simply, they were being neglected and had been for a period of at least three months.”
Inspector Burrell said it was ‘touch-and-go’ for a while whether Ace would survive but after weeks of veterinary treatment, the dog pulled through. King and Sasha also recovered and all three animals have now been rehomed.
Inspector Burrell said: “It is not acceptable to treat animals like this. Pet owners have a legal responsibility to ensure that their pets are being fed, being kept in a suitable environment and are being treated for any medical ailments.
“Ace, King and Sasha were being failed by their owners. Thankfully, all three dogs are now in happy new homes and are thriving.”
Sentencing | 12-week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months; ordered to pay £150 prosecution costs each. 10-year ban on keeping dogs (expires June 2027).
