I apologize if this has been mentioned on this list before, but if it
hasn't, it will have pertinence to the Spokane case.  I believe that the
last I heard was that Lance was being charged with eight counts of felony
cruelty to animals; but there is another angle that maybe Jean can take in
addition to this just to strengthen her case.
 
My husband came up to the ferret shelter tonight and told me to turn on the
tv, that there was a horrible story about these kids that broke into an
animal shelter and beat 23 cats with a baseball bat in Iowa.  (Same story
that ran in People).  I don't know more details, as I turned the story on
toward the end.  However, what I did hear was that the prosecution wanted to
punish these kids severely for the horrible act that they did, yet in that
state it is not a felony to do this to an animal.  So they were faced with
the task of somehow finding them guilty of a felony, so that they would be
sent to jail rather than being found guilty of a misdemeanor.
 
What they came up with was that if the *value* of the cats totalled more
than $500, automatically the crime would be bumped up to a felony for (I'm
assuming) destruction of property over that amount.  This is the case that
they made; unfortunately, the jury did not believe that the value of these
cats was over $500 so they did not find them guilty of a felony.  However,
the reason they didn't find the value of the cats to be over $500 was
because they were stray cats, in a shelter, and strays were valued as having
no dollar amount (grrrrrrr).  Anyway, I DO believe that Jean could easily
prove that the value of her ferrets that were lost is over $500--has anyone
brought up before this possible angle of finding Lance guilty of a felony in
this manner??  Even though he's being charged with felony animal cruelty,
this would add to the charges and help to ensure that he is put away for his
crimes.
 
Just trying to do a little to help...
 
Kymberlie Becker Barone
Director, Pennsylvania Ferret Rescue Association
"Forget Puppy Love...There's nothing Greater than Ferret Love!" TM
http://home.sprynet.com/sprynet/ferretlady
[Posted in FML issue 2164]