Badgers
Five men who deny terrorising a badger sett with dogs, have been banned from taking their dogs more than a mile from their home. The five are also accused of failing to properly treat their injured dogs. They are one of the first groups in Scotland to be charged under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992. On 22/9/06 Kevin Andrews (28) of Hurlford, Adam Lennon (21) of Kilmarnock and Greig Withers (21) of Kilmarnock, all Ayrshire, along with Scott Collins (19) of West Calder and Derek Kelly (22) of Bathgate, both West Lothian, all deny charges under the badger protection act, the protection of wild mammals act and the protection of animals act. They are accused of digging into a sett sending a dog into it, disturbing a badger, deliberately hunting a wild animal and blocking the sett. Scott Collins also faces charges of failing to get veterinary help for his two dogs, causing them unnecessary suffering. Lennon and Withers are also charged with causing their dogs unnecessary suffering by baiting a badger. They also face charges of causing dogs unnecessary suffering and failing to get veterinary help for them. Trial was set for 7/12/06.
Bloodsports
On 5/9/06 Andy Ross (66) of Huntingdon, died in a shooting accident when he was hit in the head with his own shotgun on Mormond Hill near Fraserburgh. He was part of an organised shoot with his son and some friends.
On the 14/9/06 the last of the six policemen charged with attacking bloodsports demonstrators was cleared. They were accused of offences ranging from assault to GBH following the Countryside Alliance’s demo outside Parliament in September 2004. Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur said: “These officers policed a very long and very difficult demonstration. “They were faced with a hard core of protesters who were both determined and violent, uninterested in lawful protest and intent on breaking barriers to gain entry in to the Houses of Parliament. “Police officers – doing what is essentially their job – were faced with a barrage of missiles that included fireworks, sections of scaffolding and barriers. “Sixty police officers were injured that day, mainly as a result of crowd action.
On 16/9/06 hunt supporter Jeffrey Poulton (39) of Llandewi Fach, Builth Wells was cleared of robbing and assaulting anti-hunt protesters. Poulton had denied robbery and two charges of common assault. A jury at Swansea Crown Court cleared him of robbery and one of the common assault charges. The judge cleared Poulton of the second assault charge after the jury could not reach a verdict. Anti-hunt protesters were filming the Golden Valley Hunt when it is alleged Poulton had grabbed one by the right leg without warning and pulled him off the bonnet, sending him crashing onto the road injuring his elbow and leg. Then, he told the court Poulton had kicked the camcorder across the road. He added when one of them quared up to Poulton he was struck on the back of the neck. When another protested at Poulton “walking off” with the camera she was grabbed by the throat, he said.
Two members of Quantock Staghounds accused of breaching the Hunting Act appeared at Taunton Deane magistrates on 22/9/06.The hearing, involving huntsman Richard Downs and whipper-in Adrian Pullivant, was adjourned in their absence until 5/10/06 at the same court.
One of the Queen’s gamekeepers is to stand trial on charges of setting an illegal trap to catch birds of prey on the Sandringham estate. Dean Wright (26) of Keeper’s Cottage, in Amner, on the Sandringham estate appeared before King’s Lynn magistrates on 23/9/06 to deny three wildlife cruelty charges while working on the estate in Norfolk. Magistrates were told that Wright is charged with setting a spring trap calculated to cause bodily injury to any wild bird coming into contact with it, and with using the trap. A third charge alleges that he “wantonly or unreasonably” set a trap illegally in the open air, causing unnecessary suffering to a tawny owl. All three offences are alleged to have happened at Shernborne, an area of woodland and fields where pheasants shoots are held. The CPS dropped two charges accusing Wright of failing to remove the bodies of rats poisoned with pesticide. He was ordered to stand trial before a district judge on 10/1/07.
A hunt supporter was found guilty of attacking a campaigner who was filming a hunt. Christopher Marles (44) of Farringdon, near Exeter, repeatedly punched a hunt monitor with the International Fund for Animal Welfare. He denied assault at a meet of the Devon and Somerset Staghounds. On 27/9/06 Exeter Crown Court heard that the hunt monitor suffered a bleeding face as well as a black eye during the attack. On 23/10/06 Marles who is also a farmer was was ordered to pay £2,500 compensation and jailed for nine months, suspended for two years.
24 men and a youth appeared in court over allegations surrounding an alleged illegal dog fight in Birmingham. At Birmingham magistrates on 3/10/06 Farid Mohammed (26) Ikhlaq Mohammed (28) Imran Arif (28) Majid Musthtaq(27) Nabeel Mohammed Safdar (24) Sohail Hussain (27) Ansar Ayub (32) Asif Hussain (33) Atif Farhan Tariq(26) Amanat Ali (40) Yasser Mohammed Khalid (26) Zahir Ahmed (30) Akil Habib Khan (26) Naveed Arif (32) Nisar Khan (31) Sajid Saed Shah (26) Sheraz Hassan (27) Nadeem Arif (33) and Basharat Ali (33) are all accused of being at a property in Alum Rock Road without reasonable excuse when dogs were placed together for the purpose of fighting. Barkat Hussain (41) Zahoor Ahmed Hussain (41) Intikab Hussain (30) and a 17-year-old youth face the same charge, as well as a charge of causing unnecessary suffering to two pit-bull terrier dogs by causing them to fight and another of causing, procuring or assisting at the fighting of two dogs. Mamoon Iftikar Ahmed (23) and Ummar Iftikar Ahmed (25) are also jointly charged with assisting in the management of premises for dog fighting.
A pub landlord and bloodsports supporter has been fined after being convicted of threatening a cameraman at one of the UK leading partridge shoots. Richard Clarke (48) who is the landlord of The Green Man, London Road, Six Mile Bottom fired a volley of abuse at Michael Huskisson who was filming the event at Six Mile Bottom. On 5/10/06 Ely magistrates heard that he then pushed Mr Huskisson into a car. Magistrates found Clarke guilty of assault and threatening behaviour fined him £250 and £364 in costs. Clarke is the chairman of the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation had denied any offence. Mr Huskisson, told magistrates that he filmed the shoot, from a public road. Clarke then walked over to him, called him a “pervert” and then unleashed a volley of foul language. Clarke then hit his camera with a stick and punched him, causing him to fall back on to the side of his car. (Watch the video of the threatening behaviour)
Two hunt supporters have pleaded not guilty to illegally hunting deer in Somerset. Richard Downs and Adrian Pullivantappeared at Taunton Deane magistrates on 5/10/06 accused of breaching the Hunting Act. The pair, both members of the Quantock Stag Hounds and from Bagborough, Somerset, are charged with hunting deer with dogs. The case, which was brought by the League Against Cruel Sports, was adjourned.
On 10/10/06 six men were charged in connection with the shooting of protected barnacle geese in Aberdeenshire. The group, aged between 35 and 71 and from West Yorkshire, were charged with offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act after the carcasses of seven of the protected birds were recovered following an organised shoot near Ellon.
On 15/10/06 two more Somerset huntsmen have been charged with breaching hunting laws. Master of the Devon and Somerset Staghounds Maurice Scott (63) from Watchet, is charged with two counts of hunting a wild mammal with dogs. Peter Heard (23) a hunt servant from Exford, faces one charge. The alleged breaches are said to have taken place on Exmoor. On 19/10/06 Taunton magistrates adjourned the case. Both men are on bail.
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On 16/10/06 at Chester magistrates Mark Walsh (18) from Netherton, Liverpool and Terence Williams (15) from Maghull pleade guilty to hunting with dogs. The pair were caught in Great Barrow, Cheshire with spades and six dogs. Walsh was fined £500 and ordered of pay costs of £2,896.07. Williams will be sentenced at Sefton Youth court in the near future. Both had their dogs and equipment confiscated. Also on 10/11/06 Paul Kelly (21) of Norris Green, Liverpool was fined £500 fine and £2,846.09 costs. Kelly also signed over his terrier, to be rehoused.
Frazor Sibley of Bignor Park Road Nursery, Bignor Park Road, Bignor, West Sussex was found guilty at Chichester magistrates on 17/10/06 of assaulting a hunt sab during a meet of the Chiddingfold, Leconfield and Cowdray Hunt on the last legal day of fox hunting in England and Wales. Sibley a hunt supporter was given a two year conditional discharge and ordered to pay £250 costs. Also see Wayne Spencer
On 21/10/06 Otis Ferry had his sentencing for drink-driving put back so he can be judged by familiar faces.was due to be sentenced at Gloucester magistrates after he pleaded guilty to driving while over the limit in Cirencester. Ferry of Keeper’s Cottage, Eaton Mascott, Shrewsbury who is the master of the South Shropshire Huntwanted the hearing delayed until at least two of the three magistrates who heard the first part of the case in August are available.Judge Shamim Qureshi agreed to the request for an adjournment.
On 27/10/06 the police charged a third huntsman with breaking the ban on hunting with dogs. Donald Summersgill, the Devon and Somerset Staghounds huntsman, will face two charges. He will appear at Taunton magistrates at the start of November.
MALTA: On 3/11/06 a hunter and a trapper were fined Lm1,300 (£2,000) between them after being found guilty of breaching hunting and bird protection regulations. Alan Spiteri (35) of Fgura was found guilty of being in possession of a number of birds on his return from Tunisia. He was found in possession of over 100 finches. These were packed in PVC tubes and the majority were already dead on arrival. He was also found in possession of a number of bird skins, including skins of a flamingo, an osprey, an avocet, two barn owls and a great grey shrike. Spiteri was also found guilty of inflicting cruelty to animals and evading duty and VAT and was fined Lm1,000. Jason Grima (34) of Rabat was fined Lm300 and conditionally discharged for a year after being found guilty of attacking police officers and trapping birds in Buskett, a bird sanctuary. He was also found in possession of nine stuffed protected birds: A marsh harrier, a Montagu’s harrier, two honey buzzards, a short-eared owl, a cuckoo, a grey heron, a bee-eater and a hoopoe.
On 14/11/06 three hunters were arrested in Northamptonshire under the 2004 Hunting Act. The three, aged 17, 23 and 35, were arrested after police received reports of people hunting with dogs in a field. Two men have now been released on police bail. The 17-year-old was dealt with informally, police said. Officers also seized a 4×4 vehicle and an estate car, which are now being forensically examined.
Danny Draper from Bampton was ordered to serve 120 hours of community service and fined £500 when he appeared before Banbury Magistrates on 22/11/06. Draper was been banned from keeping animals for a year after pleading guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to his dog. His Staffordshire bull terrier-type dog was found with puncture wounds and scars to his head, legs and chest. One of the wounds had resulted in muscle damage and none of them had been treated by a vet. The examining vet concluded that the wounds were consistent with having been fighting with another dog. Draper said that his dog had accidentally fought with another dog. He added that he didn’t take his dog to a vet because his father has a previous conviction for offences related to dogfighting and thought it might look suspicious.
One of the Queen’s gamekeepers has been fined £500 and ordered to pay £470 costs for setting a rat trap that snared a tawny owl by mistake. Dean Wright (26) of Anmer, Norfolk who works on the Sandringham Estate, near King’s Lynn, Norfolk, admitted committing the offence at Shernborne. Wright appeared at King’s Lynn magistrates on 23/11/06 where he denied causing unnecessary suffering to the owl caught in the trap and the Crown Prosecution Service chose not to pursue that charge.
On 24/11/06 several people were charged after a police crackdown on hare coursing in the north east of Scotland. Grampian Police said four people were charged after alleged incidents in Inverurie and near Elgin. A 30-year-old man from Aberdeen was charged with an offence under the Protection of Wild Mammals (Scotland) Act 2002, which makes it illegal to hunt wild mammals with a dog. Three others were charged with similar offences and vehicles were also confiscated.
US country singer Troy Lee Gentry (39) pleaded guilty to falsely registering a captive bear as being killed in the wild. On 28/11/06 Gentry was fined $15,000 (£7,713) and agreed to give up hunting in the state of Minnesota for five years. Gentry bought the bear in 2004 in order to hunt it with a bow and arrow on a private enclosure. The guilty plea enabled the singer to avoid a trial.
Eggs/Birds
On 29/9/06 a man was arrested and charged in connection with the alleged poisoning of wild birds. The arrest of the 55-year-old, from Lauder in the Borders, follows a police raid. Officers said they had charged him with several offences under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The charges – said to run into double figures – are believed to be related to the alleged use of illegal poison. The man, who was was also been charged with culpable and reckless conduct and firearms offences. No court date has been set.
A man has been jailed for four months after smearing glue on branches to trap wild birds which he then kept in cages. RSPCA inspectors found two goldfinches and a bullfinch at John Dugdale’s home in Byers Green, Spenymoor, County Durham. They also found glue in a garden shed, and twigs prepared with a sticky substance, Newton Aycliffe magistrates heard on 9/10/06. Dugdale (46) had earlier pleaded guilty to six charges including possession of a wild bullfinch and a wild goldfinch. Magistrates said they had no choice but send him to prison because he had previous convictions for trapping and keeping wild birds. The court also sentenced Christopher Dugdale, who shared the same home, to 70 hours of community service and he was ordered to pay £175 in costs. He had earlier admitted five charges, including possession of a wild goldfinch. All the birds were returned to the wild.
A owner of a stately home has denied illegally buying stuffed birds of prey from a former museum worker who was a taxidermist. At Norwich Crown Court on 16/10/06 Michael Barclay(68) of Hanworth Hall, near Cromer, Norfolk, denied eight charges relating to nine birds. John Metcalf (66) of Billesdon, Leicestershire who worked at Leicester Museum, denies selling the birds without the required licences. Both men committed offences under laws protecting endangered species, the court heard. When police and the RSPB searched Barclay’s home they discovered a stuffed pair of peregrine falcons, two barn owls, a tawny owl, a sparrowhawk, a long-eared owl, a little owl and a short-eared owl.
On 26/10/06 Barclay was found guilty by a jury at Norwich Crown Court of eight charges of illegally purchasing prohibited specimens of birds. Metcalf was found guilty of eight counts of selling prohibited species and was given a two-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months.It emerged after the verdict that Barclay, who was also ordered to pay £30,000 in costs, had pleaded guilty in a previous hearing to two counts of smuggling wild bird eggs in to the country from Russia and Norway – charges which Judge Simon Barham deemed the most serious.Barclay also admitted four charges of possessing stuffed wild birds and eggs, with some of the birds from a protected site on the Scottish island of North Rona. Metcalf also pleaded guilty today to two charges of taking a wild bird and one of disturbing a wild bird.
A bird watcher who pitched his tent too close to the nest of one of Scotland’s rarest birds could have caused a conservation disaster, a court heard. On 9/11/06 Stirling Sheriff Court was told how Robert Ashcroft (43) from Largs, in Ayrshire went to a remote spot to photograph duck and red kites. Ashcroft admitted recklessly disturbing wild birds on a nest and was fined £300.
A birdwatcher walked free from court after charges involving protected birds of prey were found not proven. Jonathan Lingard (33) of Whittington Road, Stourbridge, West Midlands appeared at Perth Sheriff Court on 16/11/06. The convicted birdwatcher had denied intentionally disturbing a golden eagle while it was in or near a nest containing eggs or young birds. Lingard also denied carrying out a similar offence at the same spot three days earlier. In addition, he pled not guilty to intentionally disturbing merlins while they were in or near a nest containing young. The charges mirrored those faced by Lingard and his father Clive (60) when they appeared in court in England in 2005 and included one of the same nests in Perthshire. Then, the pair received suspended jail terms and fines after admitting 12 counts of intentionally disturbing the nests of rare birds in Perthshire and elsewhere in Scotland. They were each fined £1500 at Redditch Magistrates Court in relation to the disturbance of a white-tailed eagle on the Outer Hebrides in 2002 plus costs of £750 each. For the other offences committed in 2003 and relating to disturbing golden eagle, white-tailed eagle, dotterel, merlin and hen harrier in Perthshire, Mull and the Uists, they each received a concurrent six-week custodial sentence, suspended for two years.
James Thomson (27) of Navitie Park, Ballingry who is training for a career in conservation appeared in court for keeping a collection of wild birds’ eggs he found as a boy. On 28/11/06 Thomson admitted possessing the eggs after police found them in a box under his bed. After considering the matter, he deferred sentence until 25/7/07 for Thomson to be of good behaviour. Thomson is studying countryside management in Forfar and also volunteers at a local conservation area, showing children the various flora and fauna.
Pet shop Desmond Prior (40) who runs Prior’s Pets, at The Stow, Harlow, was found guilty of 14 counts of illegal possession of wild birds including bullfinches, gold-finches, siskins, bramblings and linnets. He was given a 12-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £5,000 costs when he appeared at Southend magistrates on 30/11/06.
On 1/12/06 a man from the Elgin area was charged with numerous offences under wildlife protection legislation, following the discovery of poisoned birds. The 50-year-old was charged following a joint operation which involved Grampian Police wildlife crime officers, officials from the Scottish Executive’s environment and rural affairs department and RSPB investigators.
Equine
Mary Williams of The Ridings, Cobham and is a prominent member of the Bookham Riding Club, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to her horse- but will still be allowed to keep horses. Williams has worked with horses for more than 30 years, taking part in competitions and organising events on behalf of the riding club. RSPCA inspectors discovered Williams had neglected her 15-year-old chestnut mare. The pony’s horns should be trimmed every five or six weeks by a blacksmith. But they had not been trimmed, meaning her foot had grown to 12in long, compared to its normal length of 4in. This meant the pony was being forced to carry around excess weight, causing extensive damage to her ligaments. Williams, a schoolteacher, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to an animal at Redhill magistrates on 8/11/06. She was ordered to pay £2,498.56 costs but was given a three-year conditional discharge. This means she is free to own and look after horses.
A trainer and Grand National-winning jockey admitted animal cruelty following the death of a mare. What’s A Filly had to be put down after she developed a leg infection while at Richard Guest’s County Durham stables. He admitted to Durham magistrates on 14/11/06 one charge of causing unnecessary suffering to the animal by failing to exercise reasonable care and supervision. Richard Guest (41) of Brancepeth Manor Farm, was given a two-year conditional discharge and told to pay £4,730 costs. Head lad Richard Dalton (41) and head girl Louise Tidman (34) were also charged in connection with the mare’s death, and admitted omitting to provide veterinary care. They were also given a two-year conditional discharge, and none of the defendants were disqualified from keeping animals. Paul Struthers, PR manager for the Horseracing Regulatory Authority (HRA), revealed Guest is unlikely to have his trainer’s license withdrawn.
A former vet has been banned from keeping animals for five years after he left his Shetland pony, to suffer without treatment for overgrown hooves and the painful foot condition laminitis. Alan Tait of of Bentley Road, Meltham who is the owner of the pony, has been banned from keeping animals for five years, ordered to carry out 240 hours unpaid work in the community, and ordered to pay costs of £500 by Manchester magistrates on 22/11/06. Tait was found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to the Shetland pony by failing to provide it with veterinary care for laminitis and hoof overgrowth, and failing to exercise reasonable care at an earlier hearing. The court heard that Tait was suffering from depression having been struck off as a vet. (Tait’s other convictions)
Charlotte Kelway (62) of Pembrokeshire was been banned from owning horses for three years after allowing a stallion’s hooves to overgrow by more than a metre. Kelway admitted causing unnecessary suffering and was also fined £1,000 and told to pay £1,800 in costs by Haverfordwest magistrates on 23/11/06. A vet found the horse had not had its hooves trimmed for up to 10 years.
Mathew Rutland and Tanya Hatcher of Hamilton Road, Gillingham, pleaded guilty before magistrates in Chatham on 14/12/06 to causing unnecessary suffering to horses in their care. Rutland pleaded guilty to three counts of causing unnecessary suffering to three horses and was given a 12-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £4,580 costs. Hatcher pleaded guilty to one count of causing unnecessary suffering to a horse and was ordered to pay £780 costs.
Renee Springett (44) from Llansilin near Welshpool has been banned from owning horses for life after she admitted causing unnecessary suffering to four ponies, left malnourished and infected. Springett admitted four charges at a hearing in Welshpool on 15/12/06. Springett who admitted the charges was also given 240 hours community service and ordered to pay court costs of more than £5,700.
Assorted
Australia – On 5/9/06 a fishing boat skipper and his deckhand were charged over the shooting of more than 40 protected fur seals. A 29-year-old man and a 19-year-old man, both from Newhaven, were charged with 22 offences including conduct endangering life, using firearms in a dangerous manner, aggravated cruelty, and hunting and destroying wildlife. The charges related to an incident when dozens of seals were found dead or dying after being allegedly shot on Kanowna Island, within the Wilsons Promontory National Park in Victoria’s southeast. They were charged and bailed to appear before the Korumburra Court on 3/11/06.
Two men who were secretly filmed beating turkeys with a stick have been ordered to do community service. Norwich magistrates were told on 7/9/06 that Daniel Palmer (27) and Neil Allan (30) both from Dereham, Norfolk, used poles “like baseball bats” to hit turkeys. Both men admitted causing cruelty at Bernard Matthews’ Beck Farm in Felthorpe, near Norwich. Allan said he was suffering from stress and saw it as a form of anger release. Palmer said he was ashamed. The pair were each ordered to complete a 200-hour community order.
A circus boss has been charged over a road accident that claimed the lives of a mother and daughter. Stephen Courtney(35) of Earl Street Longford denied intentionally or recklessly attaching a trailer to a lorry which broke free. Joan Reilly and her daughter Siobhan died when their car was hit by the trailer. On 13/9/06 Galway District Court remanded Courtney on ball on his own surety of €1,000. She ordered him to appear before the court on 25/9/06.
A man accused of stealing SpongeBob the squirrel monkey asked for his case to be heard in front of a jury. Marlon Brown(22) of Brixton, south London allegedly snatched the rare two-year-old Bolivian squirrel monkey while on a day out at Chessington World of Adventures. The endangered monkey, worth an estimated £2,500, was eventually found four days later playing with a group of young children more than 13 miles away on Clapham Common in south London. Brown appeared at Kingston-upon-Thames magistrates on 14/9/06 to face one charge of theft. The case will return for committal at the same court on 26/10/06.
On 18/9/06 Bernard Martin McBride pleaded guilty to transporting racing greyhounds from Ireland to the UK in cages too small to allow the animals to stand comfortably or lie down. McBride pleaded guilty to a transit offence in relation to ten greyhounds that were found in small cages stacked inside a van. McBride said that he had been unaware of the regulations, despite being in the racing greyhound industry for 30 years and transporting dogs for six years from Ireland to the UK. McBride was given a conditional discharge for three years and ordered to pay £4,000 towards costs by magistrates.
A Sheffield man and a woman have been arrested in connection with the theft of monkeys from zoos around the country.Eighteen monkeys from zoos in East Sussex, Devon and Cambridgeshire were recovered by police and two men were arrested.On 13/10/06 a man and a woman, both in their 30s and from Sheffield, have been arrested in connection with handling the monkeys. Two men, both 35, from Tunstall, near Stoke-on-Trent, were arrested on suspicion of burglary and handling stolen goods in June. The 18 monkeys – including four of the five marmosets stolen from Drusillas Park in East Sussex – were recovered after police raids on two properties in Tunstall.The four people arrested are all on police bail.
On 26/10/06 at Swansea magistrates a monkey breeder was cleared of causing unnecessary suffering to a capuchin baby and mother that he had separated for sale. Jason Allen (33) of West Cross, Swansea denied causing unnecessary suffering to the animal. In his verdict, the district judge said it was not illegal to keep or sell capuchins or separate mother and baby. Reaching his verdict, the district judge said he was satisfied that the case to prove suffering had been made but that he was not convinced it was unnecessary.
On 27/10/06 a royal barber was fined £10,000 for dealing in illegal ivory goods. Shaving brushes were among ivory items found during searches of the Mayfair shop and other premises of , which has served members of the royal family for 125 years. A total of 24 ivory items were seized during searches of the George F Trumper two shops – in Curzon Street, Mayfair, and Jermyn Street, St James’s – and at its head office in Upper Holloway, north London. Most were shaving brushes stamped with the words “real ivory” and were on sale for prices of up to £1,100 each. Others included hairbrushes, glove stretchers and even an elephant tusk. At City of Westminster magistrates the company pleaded guilty to two charges of keeping endangered species for sale. They were fined £5,000 on each count and the ivory was confiscated.
On 3/11/06 a concrete firm was fined for dumping on wildlife park. Easymix Concrete in Meadow Road, Sutton received the fine after a hearing at Sutton magistrates where they pleaded guilty to depositing the mixture at London Wildlife Trust’s wetlands nature reserve in Hackbridge. The company and its director, Steven Brown, were charged £700 each for dumping the wash and £200 each for failing to respond to notices served by Sutton Council. In addition to this, costs of £450 and compensation of £250 were awarded to the council.
A Belgian man who had sex with dozens of animals and then posted photos of his acts on the internet walked free – after a court ruled bestiality was not a crime. The Antwerp appeal court heard on 14/11/06 how the 37-year-old man from Genk, abused the beasts over a two-year period. He was working as a volunteer at an animal sanctuary at the time. He then put thousands of photos of his acts on the internet. But the court ruled that the man could not be prosecuted for the acts, as animal sex is not punishable under Belgian law. He was, however, fined €500 euros for violating public decency legislation.
An animal sanctuary manager was sentenced to community service for selling ponies and lambs in his care. John Watson(44) of Irthing Park, Brampton who used to run the sanctuary owned by millionaire Gretna FC boss Brooks Mileson, had earlier admitted theft and deception. Carlisle Crown Court was told on 15/11/06 he went against Mr Mileson’s promise no animals at Blackford would be sold. Watson was ordered to complete 240 hours community service and pay £250 costs. The court had earlier heard Watson, who ran the sanctuary on Mr Mileson’s estate north of Carlisle, seriously breached his bosses’ trust by selling three Shetland ponies, two Jacob sheep, 12 lambs and a mare. He also took £2,000 from the sanctuary’s account to buy equestrian equipment for his daughters.
Damien French who was spared jail for feeding a live rabbit to an alligator has been sent to a young offenders’ institution. French received a suspended sentence in April for the offence at Colwyn Bay’s Welsh Mountain Zoo. He was jailed by Prestatyn magistrates on 17/11/06 for trespass with intent to burgle at Rhyl Golf Club. French, of Rhyl, admitted the offence, and the court activated three months of the suspended sentence and imposed a further month.
A man who claimed he killed a swan because he was hungry on the second day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan has been jailed for two months. Shamshu Miah (52) from Llandudno was released because of the time he has already spent in custody. On 22/11/06 he admitted intentionally killing a wild bird at Llandudno boating pool and possessing a kitchen knife in public.
On 24/11/06 a private investigator from Preston has admitted to harassing a woman, and as a result has been fined £80. Anthony Gerard Fisher sent an animal welfare campaigner, a string of malicious text messages in September this year. These abusive and threatening messages were reported to Chorley Police who traced them to Anthony Gerard Fisher(44) who is a director of A.G.F. Law Services, Chapel Lane, New Longton, Preston.
On 28/11/06 Keith Ashworth (65) from Longsight, Manchester admitted a catalogue of offences which included one count of child rape, two others of attempted child rape, including one against a boy under five and one of having sex with an animal. The animal involved was his pet collie dog, which he filmed as it had sex with him. As well as admitting 12 sex offences, Ashworth asked for a further 57 offences to be taken into consideration, some relating to his personal computer collection of 3,000 obscene images. Ashworth had worked as a handyman and has been a regular holiday visitor to West Cumbria for the past 20 years, in recent years staying at a static caravan park in Braystones, near Egremont. He committed the offences between June 1994 and July of this year, the court heard. Ashworth will be sentenced on 23/3/07 after psychiatric and background reports have been prepared. He was put on the Sex Offenders’ Register.
On 29/11/06 Stephen Courtney (35) Earl Street, Longford town, Co Longford, pleaded guilty to the charge that he intentionally or recklessly engaged in conduct which allowed a trailer to be attached to a lorry unit and another trailer in a defective manner, thereby causing the trailer to become detached. Circus lorry driver, Francisco Daria (23) a Venezuelan national with addresses in Cherry Wood Park, Dublin, and San Lodovico, Sio Saliceto, Italy, who had also denied two counts of dangerous driving also changed his plea to that of guilty. The judge discharged the jury and adjourned sentencing in the case to 19/12/06. The lorry was driven by Daria while Circus Vegas is wned by John and Stephen Courtney.
Paul Dunn (52) from Bredbury, Stockport threatened a police officer with two boa constrictor snakes in Greater Manchester was given a two-year conditional discharge. Dunn denied two charges of affray and common assault but pleaded guilty to using threatening behaviour. On 6/12/06 Manchester Crown Court heard how Dunn had become violent when police tried to remove two of his dogs. The judge ordered that the other offences lie on file. Police had been issued with a warrant to remove two of the dogs, but when Dunn became angry the officers decided to search the rest of the property. While searching the garage the officers found 40 reptile tanks containing more than 100 snakes, along with rats, lizards and a tortoise, and decided to call the RSPCA. The court was told that Dunn became angry and told the police officers to take the lot. He then picked up two snakes and threatened the officers.
On 8/12/06 vet Alan Tait was convicted of two drink driving offences and was banned from driving for three years. Huddersfield Magistrates heard that Tait had been caught drink driving and drunk in charge of a vehicle by police twice. He was banned from driving for 36 months, but that will be reduced by nine months if he successfully completes a drink drive rehabilitation course, which he agreed to do. He was also given a community supervision order for 18 months. Tait was also convicted of having no insurance, but no separate penalty was imposed. He will also have to pay prosecution costs of £200. At Manchester magistrates Tait was sentenced to do 240 hours unpaid community work and also banned from keeping any animals for five years. He had been convicted in his absence of two counts of causing the pony unnecessary suffering. Tait was struck off in 2003 for by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons – for claiming for work he hadn’t carried out. At Manchester Crown Court in May 2006 he was given a suspended six-month jail sentence for continuing to practise in Oldham while banned.
Farm Animals (Guardians Of The Land – My Arse!!!)
A farmer caught neglecting his animals for a second time was let off with a caution on 1/10/06. Richard Baskerville (66) of Annan, Dumfriesshire, had eight starving calves and six goats. One later died. He was halfway through a 10-year order banning him from keeping animals. He kept them in a rented shed which had tiny wooden cages behind it. In 2001, Baskerville was convicted of cruelty to sheep at his farm in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, and the animal ban was imposed. Three years later, he breached the order by keeping a goat.
A Llyn sheep farmer, who pleaded guilty to a total of nine animal cruelty charges, has been ordered to pay a total of £8,200 in fines, plus £1,762.50 in prosecution costs. Magistrates at Pwllheli heard on 4/10/06 that Owen Arfon Jones (43) of Bron Miod, Llanaelhaearn had a number of rotting sheep carcasses on his land. They also checked out 150 sheep and lambs, and found 70% of them lame, with evidence of foot rot. Jones entered pleas of guilty at a previous hearing to four charges of wantonly or unreasonably causing unnecessary suffering to sheep and lambs, also one charge of possessing the decomposed remains of an animal, one charge of possessing the mummified remains of an animal, and three charges of failing to keep proper movement records.
An organic farmer killed off hundreds of wildlife species in a conservation area deemed to be a site of special scientific interest, a court heard on 12/10/06. A single insect was all that managed to survive after Timothy Bruges (59) of Laighwood Farm in Dunkeld, Perthshire let toxic sheep-dip poison a protected loch adjacent to his farm. Bruges was fined £600 at Perth Sheriff Court. Bruges admitted he let synthetic pyrethoroid sheep dip enter a burn running into the loch by way of a drain.
On 20/10/06 farmer Martin McAndrew of Cornhill, Pollatomas north Mayo was convicted of animal cruelty and was sentenced to 28 days’ jail – while the State confiscates the entire stock of his farm. McAndrew had earlier been ordered to dispose of all of his cattle and sheep within six weeks. But when he appeared again before Belmullet District Court he agreed he still had 25 sheep and 25 cattle, as well as “four pet sheep”. The judge fined McAndrew €500 for “cruel ill-treatment of a cow” and €200 for littering and sentenced him to 28 days’s jail so officials could confiscate the remaining animals. Recognisance in the event of an appeal was fixed at €3,000.
On 27/10/06 Llandrindod magistrates handed out a jail sentence to a Rhayader farming couple banned for life from keeping sheep, cattle and pigs after causing unnecessary suffering to sheep on their farm. Farmer Thomas Steven John Breese(64) of Cwmderw, Pantydwr, was jailed for 11 weeks. His wife Elizabeth (63) was told: “While he was in prison you will be deemed to have sole responsibility. If you are brought before the court again you can guess what the consequences will be.” At an earlier hearing at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court, the Breeses lost an appeal against their conviction and were given seven days to clear all livestock off their land. The court was told sheep at the farm had to be destroyed by vets because they were emaciated, anaemic, had lice and were too weak to stand. The court was also told both Mr and Mrs Breese have previously been subject to banning orders. Mr Breese was banned from keeping bovine animals and sheep for five years in 2001, and Mrs Breese was banned from having custody of bovine animals for five years in 2004. The judge dismissed the appeal on four charges relating to four specific animals, and ordered the couple to pay £5,500 costs at £500 month. At Llandrindod, Mr Breese was ordered to continue to pay the £250-a-month half share of that. Mrs Breese was ordered to continue to pay her half share, plus an additional £400 costs imposed by Llandrindod magistrates, still at £250 a month. Her existing community order for unpaid work was revoked, and a new one of 200 hours imposed.
A farmer who single-handedly slaughtered almost 4,000 pigs after a banned food additive was discovered on his farm was ordered to pay over €71,000 in fines and legal costs. Pig farmer Thomas Galvin from Ballinamuck, Dungarvan, Co Waterford denied 29 charges brought against him. Galvin was found guilty of a string of offences including the movement of pigs onto and off restricted lands following the discovery of a highly toxic additive, Carbadox, in April 2002. The court also heard how pigs taken from the restricted area eventually made it onto supermarket shelves. On 4/11/06 at Clonmel District Court Galvin was also found guilty of obstructing and impeding an SIU officer. The judge convicted Galvin on 19 charges. He imposed fines totalling €15,200 and a five-month suspended prison sentence. Galvin was also ordered to pay over €56,000 in costs.
On 7/11/06 John Bass (60) of Linnet Drive, Rippingale was found guilty of nine charges of causing unnecessary suffering to a pig, two dogs, a hedgehog, a pigeon, a pheasant and 151 sheep. Sadly, the pig, two sheep, the pigeon and the hedgehog had to be destroyed. During the trial the court heard how the hedgehogs were kept in “tiny and filthy”‘ plastic containers and 149 sheep were kept in a greenhouse. He was released on bail and will be sentenced at Grantham magistrates on 1/12/06.
Farmer Mark Skitt (32) of Brynhyfryd, New Cross farmer pleaded guilty to four charges of causing unnecessary suffering, four charges of causing unnecessary distress and three charges of failing to dispose of animal carcasses. Skitt, whose farm is Brynyreglwys at Llanybydder, was warned by magistrates on 24/11/06 that the offences were so serious they could send him to prison. Skitt will be sentenced on 8/12/06.
A father and son who allowed sick calves to live among rotting carcasses. On 30/11/06 at Carlisle magistrates Ian Christopher Littleton (56) of Ladysteps, Scotby, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to six calves by failing to seek appropriate veterinary advice on disease prevention and control, failing to dispose of more than 26 calves and 14 chickens without delay and allowing livestock to have access to the carcasses. His son, Steven John Littleton (26) of Burble Farm, Southwaite, admitted permitting unnecessary suffering to be caused to six calves by failing to seek veterinary advice on disease prevention and control, failing to dispose of in excess of 26 calves and 14 chickens and allowing livestock to have access to the carcasses. He also admitted supplying a weaned bull to sale with an incorrect ear tag. Ian Littleton was sentenced to a total of four months for causing unnecessary suffering and failing to dispose of the carcasses, with two months to be served concurrently for allowing animals to have access to the carcasses. He was also banned from keeping cattle for 10 years. Steven Littleton was given a three month sentence for failing to dispose of carcasses and allowing the animals to have access to the carcasses. There was no order for costs.
Farmer George Albert Jopling (76) whose family have been farming in County Durham for five generations, was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay costs of more than £1,760 at Bishop Auckland magistrates on 5/12/06 after 36 sheep and cattle were found dead at High Farm, Eastgate, in Weardale. Jopling pleaded guilty to 19 charges relating to the treatment of animals, including two of failing to provide water, seven of failing to ensure their welfare, and five of failing to dispose of the carcasses of his black Limousin cows. He also admitted five charges of not disposing of sheep carcasses.
On 7/12/06 a Shetland sheep farmer has pleaded not guilty to 25 charges of breaking the rules on the movement of sheep which may be infected with scrapie. Bryden Nicolson (34) of Garth Farm, in Graven, Mossbank, is accused of shifting 4,750 sheep, including ewes, lambs and one ram, between various holdings in breach of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) regulations. He is also charged with moving sheep without the necessary documentation and without informing Scottish Ministers. The trial is set for 1/3/07.
On 9/12/06 farmer Alan Owen of Canerw Farm, Login, near Whitland in Carmarthenshire was fined £800 after slurry leaked into a river killing thousands of fish. Owen pleaded guilty to two counts of pollution at Carmarthen Magistrates. He also had to pay £700 costs.
Pig farmer Richard Read (52) of Decoy Farm in Sedge Fen near Lakenheath has been told to carry out 240 hours of community service after welfare inspectors found six of his animals dead and dying in deep slurry. Read pleaded guilty to six counts of cruelty and one of neglect, sentencing magistrates at Bury St Edmunds heard on 19/12/06. Magistrates ordered Read to pay just over £1,500 in costs to the RSPCA and in addition to his community service order he was banned from keeping pigs for life.
Domestic
A couple who kept two German Shepherd dogs in appalling conditions, in a ramshackle shelter without bedding in freezing conditions, have been banned from keeping any animal for the rest of their lives. Tony Watkins (48) of County Road, March admitted failing to provide both dogs with an adequate diet, suitable living conditions, or veterinary treatment. Barbara Harris (43) of the same address had denied those allegations but was convicted after a trial at Wisbech magistrates on 7/9/06. Harris was ordered to pay £240 costs and Watkins must pay £100 costs.
Ryan MacDonald (33) from Hay Avenue, Niddrie was banned from keeping animals for life after pleading guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to an animal. He was also fined £200 when he appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on 7/9/06.
At Gateshead Magistrates on 12/9/06 Geoffrey Carruthers (65) of Dovedale Gardens, Beacon Lough, Gateshead, was sentenced to four months in prison and banned him from keeping animals for life after his 14-year-old boxer dog, had to be put down due to a severe back wound, which left the animal’s tail hanging by a thread of tissue.
On 13/9/06 Lynda Cairns (55) of Kidderminster Road in Sunderland was jailed for four months after trying to drown a puppy in boiling water. At Sunderland, a magistrate was reduced to tears as she heard how a ten-week old puppy lingered in agony for a week after Lynda Cairns tried to kill the unwanted pet. Cairns admitted cruelty and abandoning a puppy. Cairns’ son, David (21) admitted abandoning the still living puppy, and her daughter, Lianne (19) pleaded guilty to not seeking proper care and attention for the puppy. Lianne Cairns (below right) was given a conditional discharge for two years, disqualified from keeping a dog for two years and must pay £525 costs. David Cairns (below center) was given a two-year supervision order with 100 hours community service, was banned from keeping a dog for ten years and must pay £525 costs. Lynda Cairns (below left) was jailed for four months and was banned from keeping a dog indefinitely.
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A US serviceman who slashed his wife’s pet dog’s throat after she said she was leaving has been jailed for 18 weeks. Dustin Yandell (21) killed the golden Labrador and dumped its body in a bin outside his home in Newmarket. At Bury St Edmunds magistrates on 18/9/06 Yandell, who is based at RAF Lakenheath, in Suffolk, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a dog. Yandell was also banned from keeping animals for life.
A mother and her daughter pleaded guilty to six counts of animal cruelty walked free from court on 21/9/06. Lynda Hyham (43) of St John’s Avenue, Fleetwood, and Joanne Hyham (19) of Osborne Road, South Shore, were each handed four-month prison sentences suspended for 12 months. They were each ordered to pay £250 costs and banned for life from keeping animals. Both defendants were placed on a supervision order and ordered to enrol on the Think First programme – a rehabilitation project. Two rabbits and one lurcher dog were found dead by RSPCA inspectors.
A couple who let 10 dogs starve and rot in their own filth for half a year have been placed under continuous supervision for one year under a bond of €100 and banned for life from ever keeping animals. Anthony and Susan Coote from Harbour Street, Mountmellick, Co Laois who starved three adult Rottweiler dogs and seven Rottweiler pups, were handed the probationary sentence on 14/10/06 after paying €6,150 in fines to the ISPCA. Both pleaded guilty to the charge of cruelty to the animals when they appeared at Portlaoise District Court.
Sean O’Neill (22) of Hamilton Street, Deptford threw a kitten out of an eighth-floor flat was been banned from owning animals for 10 years. O’Neill appeared at Greenwich magistrates on 18/10/06 and was given a 56-day suspended sentence for throwing the kitten to its death. He had denied the offence but was ordered to do 200 hours’ community service and pay £800 court costs.
A couple whose dog died after being left in a car on a hot summer’s day have been ordered to pay £5,000. College lecturer Paul Wadsworth (33) and his RAF nurse wife Aisling (32), of Alderlands Close in Crowland near Peterborough left two dogs in a car. At Swindon magistrates on 18/10/06 the court heard how the pair of Newfoundlands were left for more than four hours in temperatures reaching the mid-30s degrees celsius. The couple pleaded guilty to one charge of unreasonably confining an animal in a vehicle and subjecting it to such heat that it suffered heat stroke and one similar charge relating to the animal which died. The Wadsworths were each fined £750 for each offence and ordered to pay costs of £1030 each.
A couple have been banned from keeping pets for 10 years after being found guilty of causing suffering to their two dogs. In addition to the bans, Christine Angel and Paul Morton were ordered to do 250 hours of community service and pay £50 costs after pleading guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to two dogs when they appeared at Milton Keynes magistrates 20/10/06.
An Earlsfield couple were found guilty of causing and permitting unnecessary suffering to a dog, which was left with a broken leg after being badly beaten. Maurice and Nancy Burley of Wandle Way appeared before South West magistrates, Clapham Junction on 20/10/06 accused of committing offences against the dog. Maurice Burley was convicted of carrying out the abuse and Nancy Burley of the lesser charge of failing to prevent it.The court heard how Maurice Burley was seen lifting the dog above his head and throwing it to the ground. He had also been seen kicking and beating the animal. Maurice Burley was released on conditional bail and will be sentenced on 10/11/06. Nancy Burle was fined £500.
William (30) and Claire Morris (26) of Iveagh Close, Benwell, Bishop Auckland, County Durham, appeared at West Allerdale magistrates Court on 21/10/06 and admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a rabbit and three chickens by not giving them food or water. They also pleaded guilty to a further charge of causing unnecessary suffering to the chickens by not giving them reasonable care and supervision. The couple also appeared in court in August where they were on trial for causing unnecessary suffering to two cross breed dogs. They were found guilty after the court heard that the dogs had suffered for a minimum of a week after the couple went on holiday, leaving them in a shed without food or water. The district judge told the couple he was considering a prison sentence and he adjourned the case for reports until 17/11/06.
Morag Jackson (46) and Ian Jackson (67) from Upper Auchnagorth, New Byth ran an illegal dog-breeding business at their north-east farmhouse were fined nearly £1,400 on 25/10/06. The business was run “as a hobby” by Morag Jackson but it was her husband’s responsibility to look after the animals.They appeared at Banff Sheriff Court where Morag Jackson pleaded guilty to a single charge of failing to have a breeding licence. Ian Jackson admitted nine counts of causing unnecessary suffering to many of the 33 adult dogs and 25 pups by failing to provide them with suitable accommodation, shelter from the weather and proper bedding. Ian Jackson still has a flock of around 700 sheep. Sheriff Patrick Davies told Ian Jackson he would be fined £110 for every charge of causing his animals suffering – a total of £990. Morag Jackson was fined £300 for failing to get a licence, plus an extra £100 for a separate charge of resisting arrest.
At Calderdale magistrates on 26/10/06 Gerald Williams (53) of Blackburn Buildings, off Wakefield Road, Brighouse,appeared charged with two counts of animal cruelty. Williams, who works for the Citizens’ Advice Bureau, was banned from keeping animals for life, he was given an 18-month supervision order and ordered to pay £1,000 costs. The court was told that RSPCA inspectors visited William’s home six times before he responded to their requests to take the dogs to a vet. The dogs have been now re-homed.
Maurice and Nancy Burley of Wandle Way, Earlsfield appeared at South West magistrates, Clapham Junction, on 29/10/06 where they were both found guilty of causing and allowing unnecessary suffering to their pet dog. Maurice Burley was convicted of carrying out the abuse and Nancy Burley of the lesser charge of failing to prevent it. The police were called when two independent witnesses saw Maurice Burley lifting the dog above his head and throwing it to the ground. He had also been seen kicking and beating the dog. Maurice Burley was released on conditional bail and will be sentenced on 10/11/06. Nancy Burley was fined £500.
On 1/11/06 Dean Harvey (30) of Dane Terrace, Rowley Regis was banned for life from keeping animals after a court heard how he twisted a small kitten so hard he split its spleen. Harvey pleaded not guilty at a previous hearing to causing unnecessary suffering or ill-treatment to a kitten, but the case was found proved. Along with the animal ban, he was given a 12-month community order by magistrates at West Bromwich and ordered to complete 150 hours’ unpaid work and to pay £200 costs. His sister, Janet Harvey (38) of Hilton Road, Tividale, who owned the kitten and had failed to have it looked at, previously pleaded guilty to the same charge. She was banned from keeping animals for seven years, given a 12 months community order and ordered to complete 40 hours unpaid work and pay £100 costs.
Callum Myers (18) faces jail after feeding a pet cat to his dog in Huddersfield. Myers of Ibbotson Flats, Southgate, Huddersfield, had pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to a domestic cat. On 2/11/06 Huddersfield magistrates heard how Myers picked the cat off a fence and lowered it to his Staffordshire bull terrier. The incident was captured on CCTV cameras owned by local resident. The case was adjourned until 21/11/06 when sentencing will take place.
Michael Spillane (33) of Belton Close, Leicester was banned from keeping any animal for 10 years after pleading guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to his eight-month-old Staffordshire bull terrier. On 2/11/06 Leicester magistrates also gave Spillane a two-year conditional discharge, told him to pay £100 towards prosecution costs and ordered the dog to be handed over for rehoming at the hearing. The ban applies to the rest of his family too, and means a second dog in the household will also have to be rehomed. Spillane admitted hitting the Staffordshire bull terrier against the wall.
A Nottingham couple were found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to their cat after it was bitten by a dog. John and Shariefa England of Beeston were sentenced on 2/11/11 at Nottingham magistratest after being found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to their cat. In sentencing, magistrates said that they accepted that the case had not been one of deliberate cruelty and decided not to impose a disqualification from keeping animals. John England was fined £300 and Shariefa England was fined £100. They were each ordered to pay £500 in costs.
On 9/11/06 dog dealer John Walsh (55) of Denton Hall Kennels, Low Lane, Brampton who was banned from keeping the animals for life has now been suspended by the Kennel Club. The decision means that Walsh is barred from any involvement with licensed dog shows and can’t register his animals. The decision to impose the life ban was taken at a Kennel Club disciplinary meeting in November. Walsh was found guilty earlier this year of animal cruelty and the transportation and abandonment of nine young puppies.
Eunice Carlisle (51) was banned from keeping animals for life following convictions for cruelty has been jailed for 12 weeks after breaching the order. Carlisle appeared at East Suffolk magistrates in Ipswich on 8/11/06 to answer two charges of breaching an animal disqualification order. The court heard how Carlisle had been disqualified from keeping animals for life on 29/11/93, after she was convicted of three counts of cruelty to animals. She later appealed against the decision and the sentence was reduced to a 12-year ban. However in February 2004 Carlisle was found in possession of 109 animals, many of which were being kept in cramped enclosures infested with faeces and urine. As a result Carlisle was summoned to court on further charges of animal cruelty. She was later convicted at a court in Kings Lynn where the lifetime ban of keeping animals was reinstated and she was sentenced to one month’s imprisonment. In January 2005 Carlisle was discovered with 11 cats and two domestic rabbits. When she was arrested, she admitted to officers she owned the animals but said someone was always present when she tended to them. Carlisle admitted one charge of breaching a disqualification order and pleaded not guilty to a further count of violating the order when she was found in possession of a cat. She was later convicted of the offence following a trial. Magistrates’ sentenced Carlisle to a total of 12 weeks in prison for the offences and imposed a deprivation order which will allow the animals, currently being looked after by the RSPCA, to be permanently re-homed. She was also ordered to pay £887 costs still outstanding from previous hearings.
A former Workington couple who were trying to set up an animal sanctuary have been sent to prison for a string of animal cruelty charges. William and Claire Morris, who now live in Bishop Auckland, Co Durham, appeared at West Allerdale magistrates on 17/11/06. They were found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to a pair of Border Collie type puppies, and admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a rabbit and three chickens by not giving them food or water. They also admitted a further charge of causing unnecessary suffering to the chickens by not giving them reasonable care and supervision. The couple were sentenced to four months in prison for each charge, which they will serve concurrently, and were disqualified from keeping animals for the rest of their lives.
Callum Myers (18) of Ibbotson Flats, Southgate, Huddersfield let his Staffordshire bull terrier savage a cat to death was sentenced to four months in a detention centre and banned from keeping animals. Myers admitted failing to protect a cat from injury. On 21/11/06 Huddersfield magistrates were shown CCTV footage of Myers dangling the cat above his dog, before allowing it to kill the cat. Myres was also banned from keeping animals for 20 years.
Ramon Zammit (24) of Balzan, Malta wasjailed for six months, with the sentence being suspended for three years, and fined Lm500 after pleading guilty to having pornographic material involving minors, breaching the copyright law by duplicating programmes, games and software and to ill-treating a cat. On 22/11/06 Zammit pleaded guilty to possessing blue films featuring minors. He also pleaded guilty to ill-treating a cat.
A man who cruelly abandoned his three dogs has been banned from ever owning a dog again. Gerry Fox (39) of Portlaoise, Co. Laois, left his rottweilers locked in is home for nearly a week without any human contact. Fox pleaded guilty at Portlaoise District Court on 1/12/06 to abandoning his pets. The judge banned Fox from ever keeping dogs and ordered him to pay €5,000 and expenses of €271 to the ISPCA. Fox will be back in Portlaoise District Court on 15/12/06 for final sentencing.
A police constable and a force call centre worker admitted causing suffering to their dog, which the RSPCA found in an “extremely thin” condition. Pc Adele Laurent (24) and Mark Hoare (29) both of St Sampson Road, Broadfield, Crawley in West Sussex, were banned from keeping dogs for 10 years and ordered to pay £1,500 costs each by Mid Sussex magistrates on 4/12/06.
The builder alleged to have buried 10,000 greyhounds in his allotment is to be prosecuted. It is claimed David Smith had killed up to 10,000 dogs, mostly greyhounds no longer fast enough to race, over a number of years. The Environment Agency has begun proceedings for a private prosecution against him. The allegation of depositing non-specific controlled waste without a licence relates to burying dogs in a makeshift graveyard behind his home in Northdene Terrace, Seaham, County Durham. The first hearing of the case will take place before North Durham magistrates in January 2007.
Glyndwr Jones (56) and his wife Margaret Jones (50) along with their son Michael(19) who kept more than 100 animals in their three-bedroom council home in Gorseinon, Swansea, were found guilty of cruelty to cats and dogs on 13/12/06. At the Swansea magistrates the three Joneses denied three counts of causing unnecessary suffering to 14 of the dogs and 22 of the cats on the grounds of not feeding them properly, not giving them enough space and failing to provide veterinary care. They were cleared of failing to provide veterinary care but convicted of the other two charges. Michael Jones’s parents were also convicted of breaching a disqualification order imposed four years ago when a similar animal collection was built up at the same house. They were found guilty in 2002 of causing unnecessary suffering to animals and banned from keeping more than a small number of pets. The Joneses will be sentenced in January 2007.
On 15/12/06 Cheltenham vet John McKenna was found guilty of disgraceful conduct for cutting off the tails of 11 puppies. He could be struck off by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. Two of the Weimaraner pups died after the 66-year-old carried out the controversial ‘docking’ procedure without anaesthetic. Having found Mr McKenna guilty of disgraceful conduct, he was suspended for a month.
Kimberley Ireland (21) of Borwick Court, pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to an animal by failing to provide veterinary care when she appeared at Lancaster magistrates on 15/12/06. Her Staffordshire bull cross-bred terrier was found to be in a poor physical condition, with hardly any hair on its body. Its skin was reddened and covered in sores, its paws were swollen and its eyes had a greenish discharge. It was also anaemic and had mites. Magistrates ordered Ireland to undertake 40 hours of unpaid community work within a 12-month period. She was also disqualified from keeping animals for five years and ordered to pay £200 court costs. A charge of failing to provide an animal with a balanced diet was dismissed by magistrates. Ireland’s sister Rebecca had been due to appear in court to face a charge of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.
NORTH WEST HUNT SABOTEURS 