Cruelty

A Brunswick couple faces scores of new animal-cruelty charges stemming from the discovery of nearly 100 dogs inside their home. Frederick County Animal Control Director Harold Domer said Tuesday that Ivan and Patsy Issette are charged with 97 counts each of failing to provide proper care for the animals and one count each of inflicting unnecessary pain and suffering. He says the new charges replace the 17 offenses with which they were charged in May. Domer says 33 of the 95 dogs removed from the house had to be destroyed.

By LISA GRAYBEAL Staff Writer, Waynesboro GREENCASTLE, Pa. - A Hagerstown woman was charged with cruelty to animals last week after a small dog was found in a dumpster in Greencastle in October. Lisa Marie Widmyer, 29, of 17441 Cindy Lane, Hagerstown, is scheduled to be arraigned before District Justice John Ommert on March 24 at 9:30 a.m. The cruelty to animal charge was filed last week after an investigation by Georgia Martin, humane society investigator for the Antietam Humane Society in Waynesboro, Pa. She is charged with a second-degree misdemeanor for "willfully and maliciously torturing a domestic animal," according to allegations in the criminal complaint.

An 85-year-old Hagerstown woman whose home was entered by officials last April to remove 41 cats was found not competent to enter a plea on animal cruelty charges, but her son and live-in caretaker was fined nearly $6,000 on Tuesday in Washington County District Court. Roger Mills, 50, of 40 Charles St., was sentenced to pay $5,705 in restitution to the Humane Society of Washington County over a three-year period and serve a suspended jail term of 75 days by Judge R. Noel Spence. Mills also was banned from keeping pets and feeding stray animals at the Charles Street property.

A Prince George's County man charged with plinking City Park ducks with a paintball gun last summer pleaded guilty this week to cruelty to animals, according to Washington County District Court records. Nathaniel Herring, 19, of Capitol Heights, Md., was sentenced to probation before judgment Tuesday and ordered to pay $57.50 in court costs and fees.  Charges of inflicting unnecessary suffering or pain on an animal and trespassing were dismissed, according to court records. Defendants who receive probation before judgment can have their criminal records expunged if they successfully complete probation.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. - A Jefferson County, W.Va., horse cruelty case that involved five dead horses found on a farm south of Charles Town came to a close Thursday when the man charged in the case pleaded no contest to one count of cruelty to animals, according to court records and attorneys in the case. Dennis B. Danley, 54, of Charles Town, also was fined $500 and ordered to pay $160.50 in court costs during a hearing Thursday morning before Jefferson County Magistrate Bill Senseney, according to Jefferson County Magistrate Court records.

An 18-year-old man who is accused of cheering and encouraging a boy to kick a cat off the porch of a home in Berkeley County in July was charged with one felony count of animal cruelty, according to Berkeley County Magistrate Court records. Naim Robert Carter, of 561 Good Drive in Martinsburg, was arraigned on the charge Thursday by Magistrate Jim Humphrey, according to court documents. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Sept. 25, according to court documents. The alleged incident surfaced after a woman and her daughter told police on July 28 that they saw a video posted on the Internet, according to court documents.

HAGERSTOWN ? A 62-year-old former Sharpsburg woman who kept malnourished, injured and worm-infested horses on her Washington County farm is now homeless, suffers severe depression and sleeps in her car in a Wal-Mart parking lot, her attorney told a judge Tuesday. Barbara Perry Reinken was in court to ask Washington County Circuit Judge M. Kenneth Long to modify her sentence. Reinken has tried to move to North Carolina, where she has a home, but she encountered difficulty having her probation supervised by North Carolina authorities, according to her defense attorney Edward Button.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. -- Better Days Animal League of Shippensburg, Pa., will take over operations of a Chambersburg shelter cited for having small cages and neglect. Dennis Bumbaugh, from Better Days Animal League, signed the agreement with Wanda Davenport, from Angel Hill Animal Sanctuary, last week. Angel Hill's shelter was officially closed by the Bureau of Dog Law, according to a news release. Dog Law Enforcement Officer Georgia Martin stated in the release that an "opening" inspection was conducted at the Warm Spring Road facility previously used by Angel Hill.

Orejas (Spanish for "Ears") lost his companion of six years. He is a smart guy who knows both English and Spanish commands. Good-natured and playful, he is housebroken and knows to sit and shake. Pet tip Never shave a dog down to the skin in winter, as a longer coat will provide more warmth. When you bathe your dog in the colder months, be sure to completely dry it before taking him out for a walk. Own a short-haired breed? Consider getting it a coat or sweater with a high collar or turtleneck with coverage from the base of the tail to the belly.

An Inwood, W.Va., man accused of shooting a white pit bull mix dog outside his house earlier this month was arraigned Wednesday on one felony count of animal cruelty in Berkeley County Magistrate Court, according to court documents. Earl Dean Stegall, 45, of 175 Longwood Drive, also was arraigned by Magistrate Betty Jo Hersh on one count of discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, according to court documents. Berkeley County Sheriff's Deputy H.C. Lu said in a criminal complaint that video footage from cameras mounted at Stegall's home in Timberwood Ridge subdivision show the defendant was facing the dog prior to shooting the animal.

St. Maria Goretti High School announced its People for Animal Welfare Society recently held a fundraiser to help animals affected by Hurricane Sandy.  The club sponsored a “Wear Orange” out-of-uniform day in honor of the official color of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Students could pay $5 to be out of uniform for the day and the money collected went toward the Hurricane Sandy animalrelief effort. The club also received donations for the relief fund from three local veterinarians: Drs. Tracy Barlup, Phil Palmer and Roger Horst.

A Falling Waters, W.Va., man accused of mistreating more than 130 dogs and several cats pleaded guilty Thursday in Berkeley County Magistrate Court to 10 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty. Rocky Del Trolio, 55, was placed on two years of unsupervised probation and ordered to pay court costs, and a six-month jail sentence was suspended as part of a plea agreement reached between Berkeley County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney R. Greg Garretson and Trolio's attorney, Paul G. Taylor.

An 18-year-old man who is accused of cheering and encouraging a boy to kick a cat off the porch of a home in Berkeley County in July was charged with one felony count of animal cruelty, according to Berkeley County Magistrate Court records. Naim Robert Carter, of 561 Good Drive in Martinsburg, was arraigned on the charge Thursday by Magistrate Jim Humphrey, according to court documents. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Sept. 25, according to court documents. The alleged incident surfaced after a woman and her daughter told police on July 28 that they saw a video posted on the Internet, according to court documents.

An 85-year-old Hagerstown woman whose home was entered by officials last April to remove 41 cats was found not competent to enter a plea on animal cruelty charges, but her son and live-in caretaker was fined nearly $6,000 on Tuesday in Washington County District Court. Roger Mills, 50, of 40 Charles St., was sentenced to pay $5,705 in restitution to the Humane Society of Washington County over a three-year period and serve a suspended jail term of 75 days by Judge R. Noel Spence. Mills also was banned from keeping pets and feeding stray animals at the Charles Street property.

A Falling Waters, W.Va., man accused of mistreating more than 130 dogs and several cats was charged with 141 misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, according to Berkeley County Magistrate Court records. Rocky Del Trolio, 54, of 64 Slate Lane, was arraigned on the charges Monday by Magistrate Jim Humphrey shortly after a seizure hearing was held by the magistrate at Trolio's request. Humphrey upheld the county's decision to remove the animals June 19 from Trolio's home after hearing testimony from Berkeley County Animal Control officer Kevin Jones and Trolio, who testified without an attorney.

A man is facing animal cruelty charges after police found 10 exotic African cats in his vacant property last month. Ryan Houde, 28, of Charles Town, was charged with 10 counts of animal cruelty, according to a news release from the Charles Town Police Department. Houde turned himself in on June 5, police said, and posted bond of $7,500. On May 19, officers responded to a home at 51 Shutt Court after a man who was checking on the house reported what he believed to be either a cheetah or leopard in the basement.

The trial for a man accused of shooting a caged kitten four to six times with a BB gun, killing it, has been scheduled for Feb. 14. Justin Michael Beall, who was indicted last month on one felony count of animal cruelty, was arraigned Friday on the charge by 23rd Judicial Circuit Judge Gina M. Groh. Beall, 23, of 8097 Castle Rock Court, Pasadena, Md., pleaded not guilty to the charge. A witness told police that Beall smiled before he pointed the gun into the cage and shot the cat, according to court documents.

Pauline Gilda Sheehan, 68, passed away Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2011, at Kline Hospice House in Mount Airy, Md.   She was preceded in death by her parents, John and Gilda Stevens. She was born in Elizabeth, N.J., then moved to Hagerstown, Md.   She was a nurse's aide and volunteered at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Anyone who knew Pauline knew that she had a love for all animals.   She is survived by her five children, Elise Kline, Antoinette Thompson, Steven Thompson, Pauline Thompson and Scott Thompson; five grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren, soon to be five.