MSC News

MSC News National Headlines Sports Top Headlines CBS US News CBS Technology

Atchison Man Gets Jail, Fine on Dog Cruelty Case

By David Meyer

06/05/2013

(KAIR) -- An Atchison man will get jail time and a hefty fine after being found guilty of animal cruelty Wednesday morning in Atchison Municipal Court.

Brandon Johnson was ordered to serve 30 days in jail and pay a total of one thousand 75 dollars.

He was cited in late March for not taking care of a puppy and lizard within a residence owned by him.

Atchison County Undersheriff Joe Butner, who was traveling by Johnson’s home while off duty, discovered the puppy outside of Johnson’s residence, having bloodied paws and looking malnourished, which prompted him to notify Atchison Police.

When officers arrived and entered the home, they discovered a dead lizard inside and a kennel crate filled with blood and around two inches of feces.

The puppy was taken to the Atchison Humane Society, where he died on April 3rd.

During Wednesday’s bench trial after he pled not guilty to the ticket last month, Johnson testified that he had separated from his girlfriend and gave her the home as part of the agreement.

He also claimed that he arrived to the home two days prior finding the property abandoned and gave the dog food and water after noticing its condition.

During his ruling, Judge Pat Henderson questioned why Johnson didn’t take the puppy to the vet or pound for care at that point and cited state statute and city ordinance where an animal cruelty citation doesn’t require the person to be the owner of the pet.

Johnson announced his intentions to appeal the decision and Henderson said if the appeal is granted, his sentence would be suspended until the conclusion of the proceedings.

However, if it isn’t, Henderson ordered the fine and sentence to be served by July 3rd, and that Johnson would be on unsupervised probation until the fine is paid.

You will need to be logged in to leave a comment.

Please Login

The posting of advertisements, profanity, or personal attacks is prohibited.

Click here to review our Terms of Use.