Free Republic

MISSOULA — A Missoula man is dead after police attempted to serve an arrest warrant at a home where a kitten was found severely abused earlier this week. Officers arrived to serve an arrest warrant at 2419 38th St., shortly after 1 p.m. today, but the man inside would not come to the door. The warrant was for aggravated animal cruelty charges related to the case of the abused 4-month-old kitten found at the home Sunday night after neighbors reported screams coming from the residence. A Missoula police officer talked to the man inside the home on the telephone before...

A severely abused kitten named Mercy was put down Wednesday after doctors found her spine was broken. "Her spine was just smashed," said Missoula Animal Control shelter attendant Barb Parker. "It only showed up on high resolution, but the vertebrae were just squished. He stomped her good and really hurt her back, so there was nothing to do." The shelter adopted the kitten out only to see her returned this week after a brutal beating left her pelvis smashed and an eye filling with blood. The 4-month-old kitten's owner had allegedly tried to drown her in the toilet, and apparently...