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Montco man pleads guilty to abandoning his pet dog
Posted: Wednesday, January 8, 2014 9:30 am By Margaret Gibbons Staff writer
A former Montgomery County man this week admitted abandoning his dog to a slow death.
Joe Paul, 42, formerly of Bridgeport, was sentenced to time served (15 days) to 30 days in county lockup after pleading guilty to a summary offense of cruelty to animals stemming from the starvation death of Guinness, his 12-year-old black mastiff.
Paul, who now lives in Hershey, Dauphin County, also will have to pay a $100 fine in accordance with a plea agreement accepted by Judge Cheryl L. Austin.
“All pet owners have a duty to provide food, water and shelter for their pets,†said Assistant District Attorney Kathleen Colgan. “It is important that pet owners take these responsibilities seriously, as we do in prosecuting these cases.â€
The incident began after Paul moved from his residence in the 600 block of Bush Road in Bridgeport to a nearby residence in the first block of Stewart Street in Upper Merion.
When a friend asked Paul what happened to Guinness, Paul reportedly told the friend that he had left Guinness at the home in Bridgeport where he returned everyday to feed, water and exercise the dog, according to a police reports.
Bridgeport police were contacted June 13 by a concerned citizen who had not seen the dog for awhile and, in checking the Bridgeport residence, believed that the dog might be dead inside the abandoned Bridgeport home, according to the criminal complaint.
When police got to within 20 feet of the apartment where Paul had once resided they could smell the odor of decomposition, according to the criminal complaint.
An officer opened the unlocked storm door and front door to the apartment, spotting the decomposing body of a large black dog, the complaint said.
The decomposing body of the dog, who at one time weighed 180 pounds, was on the feces covered kitchen floor, according to the complaint. The dog’s lifeless body was covered with maggots and maggot larvae, the officer reported in the criminal complaint.
The officer said in the complaint that it was apparent that the dog had been abandoned for some time. Guinness likely died of starvation, according to the complaint.
Paul told police he had to move because of foreclosure proceedings on the property and could not get back into his apartment because padlocks had been placed on the structure.
However, Colgan said, police reported no padlocks and, instead, said that the storm door and front door both were unlocked. Even if the residence had been padlocked, Colgan said, Paul could have contacted police in order to get his longtime pet out of the home.
“This man simply chose to abandon his pet and his pet died because of that abandonment,†said Colgan.
“This could all have been avoided if he had contacted police or turned the dog over to the SPCA,†said Colgan.
Montco man pleads guilty to abandoning his pet dog - The Intelligencer: Bucks County | Montgomery County | Local news | Breaking News | Sports | Entertainment | Opinion
Posted: Wednesday, January 8, 2014 9:30 am By Margaret Gibbons Staff writer
A former Montgomery County man this week admitted abandoning his dog to a slow death.
Joe Paul, 42, formerly of Bridgeport, was sentenced to time served (15 days) to 30 days in county lockup after pleading guilty to a summary offense of cruelty to animals stemming from the starvation death of Guinness, his 12-year-old black mastiff.
Paul, who now lives in Hershey, Dauphin County, also will have to pay a $100 fine in accordance with a plea agreement accepted by Judge Cheryl L. Austin.
“All pet owners have a duty to provide food, water and shelter for their pets,†said Assistant District Attorney Kathleen Colgan. “It is important that pet owners take these responsibilities seriously, as we do in prosecuting these cases.â€
The incident began after Paul moved from his residence in the 600 block of Bush Road in Bridgeport to a nearby residence in the first block of Stewart Street in Upper Merion.
When a friend asked Paul what happened to Guinness, Paul reportedly told the friend that he had left Guinness at the home in Bridgeport where he returned everyday to feed, water and exercise the dog, according to a police reports.
Bridgeport police were contacted June 13 by a concerned citizen who had not seen the dog for awhile and, in checking the Bridgeport residence, believed that the dog might be dead inside the abandoned Bridgeport home, according to the criminal complaint.
When police got to within 20 feet of the apartment where Paul had once resided they could smell the odor of decomposition, according to the criminal complaint.
An officer opened the unlocked storm door and front door to the apartment, spotting the decomposing body of a large black dog, the complaint said.
The decomposing body of the dog, who at one time weighed 180 pounds, was on the feces covered kitchen floor, according to the complaint. The dog’s lifeless body was covered with maggots and maggot larvae, the officer reported in the criminal complaint.
The officer said in the complaint that it was apparent that the dog had been abandoned for some time. Guinness likely died of starvation, according to the complaint.
Paul told police he had to move because of foreclosure proceedings on the property and could not get back into his apartment because padlocks had been placed on the structure.
However, Colgan said, police reported no padlocks and, instead, said that the storm door and front door both were unlocked. Even if the residence had been padlocked, Colgan said, Paul could have contacted police in order to get his longtime pet out of the home.
“This man simply chose to abandon his pet and his pet died because of that abandonment,†said Colgan.
“This could all have been avoided if he had contacted police or turned the dog over to the SPCA,†said Colgan.
Montco man pleads guilty to abandoning his pet dog - The Intelligencer: Bucks County | Montgomery County | Local news | Breaking News | Sports | Entertainment | Opinion
