Animal Cruelty Convictions Affirmed

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court affirmed an animal cruelty conviction in a case where the defendant had admitted shooting a pellet gun and striking a sheepdog named Kiera, who had bit through her leash and wandered into the defendant’s yard. 

He testified he had acted out of concern for his spouse’s health

In this case, the defendant testified that he intended to shoot the dog and, in fact, hit her exactly in the spot where he aimed. Whether the defendant intended only to “sting” the dog in order to discourage her return to the defendant’s property is immaterial. See Commonwealth v. Erickson, supra at 177 (necessary that the defendant “intended the act to occur which constitutes the offense”). Shooting the dog and having the pellet lodge in her hind leg, deep into the muscle and close to the bone, unnecessarily, and unjustifiably, caused severe pain to the animal to the point where she was unable to walk, was kept up at night for several days whining, remained lying down for a week, with her food brought to her, and required confinement to the house for approximately months until she had recuperated fully. In addition, although it was unsuccessful, the dog required surgery, was given pain medication, and still has a limp, all as a consequence of the defendant’s admitted actions.

While the defendant’s concern for his wife’s safety is understandable, even admirable, he had legal alternatives to shooting the dog, including monitoring his property for animal feces when his wife was planning to walk, and calling the town dog officer, as he had done before. In addition, as he testified, he aimed and fired directly at the dog, hitting her in precisely the spot he intended.

In an unrelated matter, the Delaware Supreme Court either affirmed or held that it lacked jurisdiction to review the convictions of a couple on 19 counts of animal cruelty.

One jurisdictional issue – did the offenses take place in Delaware?

Defendants‘ house and attached garage are located at 800 Chambers Rock Road in New Castle County, Delaware. The border between Delaware and Pennsylvania runs through that property. On August 3, 2012 officers of the Kent County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Kent County SPCA), accompanied by a New Castle County police officer, a New Castle county code enforcement officer and two Pennsylvania officials, executed a search warrant on the property. Before doing so the SPCA officers went to the trouble of satisfying themselves that the house and garage are on the Delaware side of the property.

Horrific details

The officers first entered the garage, which they found was infested with “thousands of flies” and smelled of urine and feces. Inside were thirteen dogs confined in small wire cages. Their coats were stained yellow with urine and the animals were living in their own feces. Following the search of the garage, the officers entered the house. Much like the garage there was a strong stench of urine and there were feces on the floors, walls, and kitchen counters. Five dogs, fifteen cats and some ducks had free rein of the house; the cats were using a bed as a litter box. Once the officers removed what they thought were all the dogs in the home and garage, they asked defendant Edward Kelsch whether there were any more dogs. He was untruthful, telling the officers there were no more. Shortly thereafter the officers then found yet another dog, this one was inside a closed, stench-filled room with piles of runny feces on the floor. The dog could not stand and had maggots coming out of its rectum. It was later euthanized by a veterinarian.

The New York Daily News reported on the arrests and another victim

Police say they arrested a Delaware couple for letting their 12-year-old son live in a “deplorable” home overrun with farm animals and covered in feces.

Edward Kelsch, 48, and Sandra Kelsch, 49, were charged with endangering the welfare of a child after authorities pulled the boy from the family’s home on Friday.

Police said a “pungent odor of urine” made it difficult to breathe when they entered the house, there to assist officers from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, according to a news release from the New Castle County Police Department.

Officers say dozens of animals were roaming the home, and the carpets and walls were saturated with feces and urine. Flies swarmed the residence — even inside the refrigerator.

Local SPCA agents took away 19 dogs, five cats, two rabbits, three quail, nine chickens and one duck, Maj. Brian Whipple told DelawareOnline.com.

(Mike Frisch)