Alert 8/10/08 August Court Watch
Some of our information about animal cases is incomplete as you will see below. We will update as appropriate. For those of you who have been reporting cases to us, keep doing that! We appreciate your involvement and interest!
There are a number of trials this month that warrant both following and your attendance. And if you can’t attend but want to weigh in, let the prosecutor, usually the Commonwealth Attorney, hear from you.
Please attend (and see more information in the listings below):
Thursday, 8/14/08 (Keith Copi)
case with feral cats at Fox TV in Richmond; it is possible the exterminator company, Critter Control, used gas to kill three cats; this trial warrants your attendance
Thursday & Friday, 8/21-22/08 (Joseph Dermaine Wood)
re-trial of presumed dogfighting case in Fluvanna County
Tuesday, 8/26/08 (Michael D. Smith)
trial of alleged puppymill case in Warren County
Wednesday, 8/27/08 (Michael A. Wilkerson)
appeal of conviction on four counts of animal cruelty; Caroline County
Note that on Thursday, 8/21/08 in Chesapeake General District Court, three trials (Lynda Houck, David MacGillivary, and Thomas Todd) are to take place, each scheduled for 2 pm as of this writing.
Please consider letting official in Danville know you appreciate the successful prosecution of Richard Adams and the resulting penalties Mr. Adams will be required to pay in addition to not owning companion animals again. (See the case below on both 8/1/08 and 8/6/08.) The Danville Commonwealth Attorney is William H. Fuller and his email is comthaty@ci.danville.va.us
You have no doubt heard the names of Sandra Cortes and Brenda Dodson involving animal abuse and alleged theft of dogs. There are charges against both women in Prince William and Fairfax counties, and at least Prince William County is looking at additional charges. As of this writing, much has been continued until 10/1/08, but stay tuned.
As always, feel free to ask us for more detail.
Maureen Federico, Editor, Court Watch
and
Lillian Clancy and Don Marro
8/1/08 Friday
11:00 am
Richmond County General District Court
Defendant: Annie L. Davis
Annie Davis, who takes in abandoned and abused dogs, claims the dog she is accused of stealing was Sawyer, a deer hound she rescued from King William County Pound in 2007 but who ran off in Fall, 2007; on 12/6/07, Theresa Gordon (see case immediately below) asked Ms. Davis to take in a dog that had been hanging around her house for several days, and the dog turned out to be Sawyer; Sawyer’s collar provided a name and number, and when called, Donald Clark of Montross in the Northern Neck said he was working in Maryland and could not immediately come to pick up the dog; subsequently, Richmond County deputies came to Ms. Davis’s home looking for a “stolen dog”; several days later (2/25/08), deputies in four patrol cars arrested Ms. Davis at her home, charging her with larceny of a dog (a class 5 felony) and filing a false report to law enforcement (class 1 misdemeanor)
action anticipated: trial
result: continued to 10/3/08 at 11 am
8/1/08 Friday
11:00 am
Richmond County General District Court
Defendant: Theresa E. Gordon
Theresa Gordon is charged with larceny of a dog, removing a radio transmittal collar (a class 1 misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of 12 months in jail), and grand larceny of that collar (a felony with a maximum sentence of 20 years); see case of Annie Davis immediately above; Ms. Gordon was arrested on 2/25/08 along with Ms. Davis
action anticipated: trial
result: continued to 10/3/08 at 11 am
8/1/08 Friday
2:30 pm
Danville General District Court
Defendant: Richard W. Adams
Richard Adams was charged with cruelty to an animals, a class 1 misdemeanor; Danville police trying to serve an arrest warrant to the son of Mr. Adams, Brandon Waddell, discovered a severely injured pit bull there; after seeing the dog, police officers called for help from Danville Animal Control; Paulette Dean, Director of the Danville Area Humane Society, and ACO Dockery took the dog to a veterinarian; the dog’s leg was amputated; Ms. Dean said owners of companion animals must provide vet care and treatment to prevent suffering under Virginia law
action anticipated: trial
result: continued to 8/6/08 at 4:00 pm
NOTE: see Adams case below on 8/6/08
8/4/08 Monday
9:00 am
Loudoun County Circuit Court
Defendant: Dennis Danley
on 1/22/08, 48 horses were seized from a Loudoun County farm, the horses having no food and frozen water; on 1/30/08 General District Court Judge gave custody of the horses to Loudoun County Animal Care and Control; owners were ordered to reimburse the county for food and medical costs since seizure; Mr. Danley was indicted by a Loudoun County Grand Jury on 48 counts of animal cruelty (class 1 misdemeanors)
action anticipated: date to be set for trial
result: set for jury trial 1/20/09 – 1/22/09
8/4/08 Monday
9:00 am
Prince William General District Court
Defendant: Sandra I. Cortes
Sandra I. Cortes, who owned an animal rescue (Assisi’s Animal Rescue Foundation) in Massanas, and Brenda E. Dodson who worked there for Ms. Cortes, (see Dodson below, also on 8/4/08), released 95 dogs and 16 cats to the Prince William County Police, Animal Control Bureau, on 5/5/08; investigators had found dozens of diseased and malnourished animals, some standing in their own waste with no food or water; three dogs were found buried in fresh graves, abused before they died; the women were arrested 7/1/08, each charged with 28 counts of animal cruelty which are class 1 misdemeanors that carry up to a $2,500 fine and one year in jail; Judge set a pre-trial condition that they not be in custody of any animals; both women were released on a $5,000 bond, but the bond was revoked and the women are in jail, having more recently been charged by Fairfax County officials with theft of dogs; in addition, there are potential additional charges pending from Prince William county
action anticipated: trial
result: continued to 10/1/08
8/4/08 Monday
9:00 am
Prince William General District Court
Defendant: Brenda E. Dodson
virtually all charges and actions described for Sandra Cortes (above on 8/4/08) apply to Brenda Dodson
action anticipated: trial
result: continued to 10/1/08
8/6/08 Wednesday
4:00 pm
Danville General District Court
Defendant: Richard W. Adams
NOTE: see description of case above (see 8/1/08 – Richard Adams)
action anticipated: trial
result: trial; found guilty; fined $150.00 and $76.00 in court costs, both due by 11/4/08; charged $732.09 in restitution and is not to own companion animals in the future
8/7/08 Thursday incomplete information
9:00 am
Fauquier County General District Court
Defendant: Christopher Dowd
incomplete information; many dogs and other animals found in Morrisville (Fauquier County) which prompted seizure warrants to be issued for 6 horses and 44 dogs of a total of 68 animals involved including cats, chickens, dogs and horses; those not seized were signed over to Humane Investigator Hilleary Bogley of the Middleburg Humane Foundation
result: hearing regarding the 14 counts of criminal felony cruelty to be held on 8/18 (information incomplete; see Dowd on 8/18 below)
8/14/08 Thursday
9:30 am
Henrico County General District Court
Defendant: Keith J. Copi
feral cats and their habitat were destroyed at the Fox TV station in Richmond in June, 2008 despite the willingness of the Richmond SPCA and the Virginia Federation of Humane Societies to help find a non-lethal solution that would be implemented by organizations familiar with feral issues; Fox TV used the exterminator company Critter Control, and Keith Copi of Critter Control is being sued; he is charged with three counts of animal cruelty, one for each cat killed, with maximum penalties for each count being 12 months in prison and a $2,500 fine; a mobile gas chamber may have been used to kill the cats
action anticipated: trial
8/14/08 Thursday incomplete information
time not known
Fauquier County General District Court (to be confirmed)
Defendant: ____ Cooper (to be confirmed)
three horses seized
action anticipated: seizure hearing
8/14/08 Thursday incomplete information
time not known
Fauquier County General District Court (to be confirmed)
Defendant: ____ Presnell (to be confirmed)
three horses seized
action anticipated: seizure hearing
8/15/08 Friday
10:30 am
Prince William General District Court
Defendant: Brenda Dodson
NOTE: see Dodson case of 8/4/08 above
continued to 10/1/08
8/18/08 Monday incomplete information
time not known
court not known; will be in Fauquier County
Defendant: Christopher Dowd
14 counts of criminal felony cruelty to animals
NOTE: see Dowd case of 8/7/08 (above)
action anticipated: not known; possible trial; incomplete information
8/18/08 Monday incomplete information
time not known
Fauquier County General District Court (to be confirmed)
Defendant: ____ Cooper (to be confirmed)
cruelty hearing on horses seized
NOTE: see Cooper case of 8/14/08 (above)
action anticipated: hearing; possible trial; incomplete information
8/19/08 Tuesday
9:00 am
Warren County Circuit Court
Defendant: Joseph Paul Godfrey
in 9/07, Mr. Godfrey, a Warren County resident, adopted a miniature pinscher from the Fauquier County SPCA; 2 days later he brought the dog to the Marshall Vet Clinic with head injuries and hip dislocation, injuries indicating trauma as a result of kicking, the injuries so severe that the dog was euthanized; Mr. Godfrey was indicted by the Grand Jury; case was set for arraignment on 5/5/08 but was continued to 6/2/08 and again to 7/1/08; on 7/1/08, Mr. Godfrey pleaded guilty to a felony charge of animal cruelty; the judge requested a pre-sentencing report on 8/19/08
action anticipated: pre-sentence report
8/21/08 Thursday
2:00 pm
Chesapeake General District Court
Defendant: Lynda Houck
various charges of inadequate shelter and care; one charge of cruelty for failure to provide emergency medical care
NOTE: continued from 11/29/07 to 1/31/08 to 3/27/08 to 5/1/08 to 6/10/08 to 8/21/08
action anticipated: trial
8/21/08 Thursday
2:00 pm
Chesapeake General District Court
Defendant: David J. MacGillivary
according to police, David MacGillivary and Thomas Todd (see Todd case on 8/21/08 – below) clubbed a mother goose and five of her goslings to death on 6/27/08 on Basin Road near the Atlantic Yacht Basin; Mr. MacGillivary faces two counts of animal cruelty
action anticipated: trial
8/21/08 Thursday
2:00 pm
Chesapeake General District Court
Defendant: Thomas J. Todd
Thomas Todd faces three counts of animal cruelty (see MacGillivary case on 8/21/08 above)
action anticipated: trial
8/21/08 – 8/22/08 Thursday & Friday
9:30 am
Fluvanna County Circuit Court
Defendant: Joseph Dermaine Wood
re-trial; suspected dogfighting; six dogs apparently kept and trained for fighting; setting typical of dogfighting including barrels heavy chains, re-bars sunk into ground; case arose out of complaint in neighborhood about another situation; Mr. Wood consented to releasing the dogs which were euthanized; mis-trial (hung jury) 4/18/08
action anticipated: retrial; jury trial
8/26/08 Tuesday
10:00 am
Warren County General District Court
Defendant: Michael D. Smith
suspected puppymill; Warren County Sheriff’s office seized 22 dogs from an unlicensed breeding operation in Linden on 2/28/08; the animals were housed in cold dark conditions, were hungry and underweight; Mr. Smith faces a charge of no rabies vaccinations in addition to 23 charges of animal cruelty; Mr. Smith has a pending case (12/08) in Warren County from an offense in 9/07 regarding operating a kennel in an R-1 zone
action anticipated: trial
8/27/08 Wednesday
10:00 am
Caroline County Circuit Court
Defendant: Michael A. Wilkerson
appeal from conviction in General District Court on four counts of animal cruelty, 12 months jail sentence for each conviction with all time suspended except for two months in jail, restitution payment for the care of the horses, and is never to own farm animals again
action anticipated: trial
8/27/08 Wednesday incomplete information
time not known
Loudoun County General District Court
Defendant(s): names not known
two dogs with two different owners, both in Sterling, bit two different residents on 8/6/08 in two different locations
action anticipated: dangerous dog hearing(s)