Posted on 06/19/2002 5:06:29 PM PDT by Shermy
A Hannibal town justice Monday night sentenced a man to what one investigator says is among the toughest penalties faced by an Oswego County defendant in an animal cruelty case.
Darcy Noble, 33, of [ snip ] Road, Woodland Trailer Park, received three years' probation and was ordered to pay $675.15 in restitution. Justice Luther Dennison also ordered Noble not to own any animals for the next five years.
Noble admitted last month in court that he starved his dog earlier this year. The dog, a 3- or 4-year-old mixed breed, never recovered from the malnutrition so doctors euthanized it, said Officer Sheldon Furlong, an Oswego County Welfare Animal Cruelty investigator.
"The judge made a clear message that this will not be tolerated," Furlong said. "It was very clear the district attorney's office and the judge are fully enforcing the Agriculture and Markets Law against people who abuse and neglect animals that result in unnecessary pain, torture and death."
Oswego County sheriff's deputies arrested Noble and Mabelene E. Gigon, 31, in February after finding a dead German shepherd and two starving mixed breeds outside their mobile home, police reports said. The mixed breeds were euthanized after doctors said the dogs were traumatized and not recovering, Furlong said.
Sheriff's Deputy Daniel J. Ferazzoli, Furlong and a town animal control officer went to the home after someone reported the incident Feb. 3.
"We found one of the dogs frozen into the ground with a collar and chain still on it. It was chained to a tree and laying next to the dog dish, which was filled with leaves," Furlong said. "The dog had been starved to death. The other two were in pretty bad shape."
A veterinarian's report showed the dog weighed 20 pounds at death, or one-third of what it should have weighed, Furlong said. The report also said the 7-year-old German shepherd had not eaten in weeks or maybe months. It died of malnutrition and exposure to cold weather, Furlong said of the report.
Noble and Gigon were charged Feb. 9 with one count of failure to provide adequate sustenance to an animal, a misdemeanor in the Agriculture and Markets Law. That was for each of the mixed breeds. Gigon also was charged with a misdemeanor count of cruelty to an animal resulting in the death of the German shepherd by starving it.
Noble and Gigon pleaded guilty to the charges last month in Hannibal Town Court, Furlong said.
Gigon's case was adjourned until July 2 because her presentence report was not complete, Furlong said.
Capital offense in my opinion.
Jeez Tabby, post 50?!? What took you so long? I'd have expected you to chime in by at least post 4 or 5. You must be getting slow in your old age.
As compared to somebody who thinks "apparanty" is a word?
Well of course I have a problem with it. I wouldn't harm an animal myself. People who do are usually a danger to humans in the long run. But there is such a thing as objectivity. Animals are NOT people. They are property, like it or not. I could not sentence someone to prison for cruelty to animals, unless the animal was owned by someone else.
The neighbor said the dogs were in agony, howling for days.
Shoot 'em.
Worse, much much worse. I'm in New York City right now. God, I wish I was in a trailor park. Better class of people, you know.
Hmmmmmm, somebody's got a little sockpuppet routine going on, eh? Interesting...
Ohh.. pointing out typos. I guess you have really won the argument on sheer merit alone.
I know. I don't think a judge can tell someone what legal property they can own for something that really isn't a crime anyway.
Animals may become property, but God save us from those who insist they're nothing more than property, to be tortured as one pleases.
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