W. Warwick woman charged with unnecessary cruelty to animals

Posted 5/31/16

On May 17, West Warwick resident Judith Carroll was arrested and charged with two counts of unnecessary cruelty to animals after two dogs were found in deplorable conditions and without food and clean water in her previous residence at 720 East Avenue in

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W. Warwick woman charged with unnecessary cruelty to animals

Posted

On May 17, West Warwick resident Judith Carroll was arrested and charged with two counts of unnecessary cruelty to animals after two dogs were found in deplorable conditions and without food and clean water in her previous residence at 720 East Avenue in Warwick following her eviction from the residence.

On May 16, Animal Control Officer Amy Violett had responded to the residence to conduct a follow-up request from Officer Scott Chanthaphouvong, who had responded to the residence on May 14 for a complaint that the owners moved and left the dogs behind. Violett said the owner of the dogs, Carroll, was not home at the time of her visit but she spoke with her over the phone.

According to Violett, Carroll, 51, said she was in the process of moving and she had been at the residence that morning and left the dogs with food and water. She said she would be returning that evening to care for the dogs. She told Violett she had contacted the RISPCA and would be turning the dogs over to them the following morning on May 17. Violett advised Carroll a follow-up visit would be conducted to assure the dogs were brought to the RISPCA.

After leaving the residence, Violett said a neighbor that lived up the street flagged her down. She told Violett that Carroll is not returning daily to care for the dogs and that the house is in bad condition. Violett told her entry cannot be obtained into the residence without the owner present, but that a follow-up would be conducted to assure the dogs were being taken to the RISPCA.

Before the follow-up could be conducted, Violett was dispatched to meet with Constable Thomas Sherman, who was on scene to execute the eviction and needed Animal Control to remove the dogs that were inside the residence.

Sherman said he had spoken with Carroll on several occasions during the last two weeks to ask her to vacate the premises at 720 East Ave. He said he went to the residence on May 11 and no one was there but he heard the dogs barking. He spoke with Carroll and asked when she was leaving and she said she would be moved out by May 17. When he came to the house on May 17, he said it still looked unoccupied, except for the dogs.

Once given permission to enter the premises by the constable, Violett said in the living room, closest to the front door, she saw a brown Pomeranian, lying on a blanket, curled up in a ball. It was undetermined if the dog was alive. To confirm, Violett put her hand on the dog’s chest to feel for breathing and also rubbed the dog’s back, at which point the dog lifted its head. She said the dog appeared frail or old and had fleas and hair loss that appeared to be the result of a skin condition, as well as had both eyes removed.

Violett said she heard barking coming from upstairs, where she found a Shepard/Rottweiler mix hiding in a closet. She said the dog looked fine but appeared skittish and afraid.

Due to prior visits to the residence, Violett was aware there were also supposed to be three cats residing at the residence, but after an extensive search none could be located. While searching, Violett observed feces, urine, and garbage along with flies throughout the residence. Both first and second floors were in this condition. On the second floor, Violett said she saw a litter box filled with feces and urine that appeared to have not been changed in at least two to three days, if not longer. It was unknown if the feces and urine were from the cats or the dogs and cats combined.

In the kitchen, Violett said there was a medium sized water bowl that was half-filled with water that did not appear fresh, as it had some debris floating in it and the water had a film. It also did not appear to have an adequate amount for two dogs left for a 10- to 12-hour period. Violett said there were pieces of dog food scattered on the floor, but she was unable to locate any bags of dog food or a bowl of food for the dogs. Upon searching the basement, Violett found a silver plate that had what appeared to be cat food on it.

After her search was completed, Violett requested an officer respond to decide if this would be a criminal complaint. Officer Charles Austin arrived on scene and was advised of Violett’s findings. He then called Sgt. Charles Boisseau to the scene, who took several photographs of the residence. After consulting with Joseph Warzycha of the RISPCA Law Enforcement division, it was determined this would be a criminal complaint and Carroll would be charged with two counts of failure to maintain adequate living conditions. She was taken into custody and transported to Warwick Police headquarters for printing and processing and later given a District Court summons.

Violett was able to get both dogs into her vehicle and transported them to the Warwick Animal Shelter, where they were secured without incident. Shelter Director Ann Corvin requested that Carroll sign the dogs over to the shelter, which she did. The dogs are listed as Tasha, a 5- to 6-year-old Shepherd/Rottweiler mix, and Snaps, a 15-year-old Pomeranian mix.

Comments

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  • Justanidiot

    I want the General Assembly to clarify what necessary cruelty to animals consists of.

    Wednesday, June 1, 2016 Report this

  • ThatGuyInRI

    "Unnecessary cruelty." What?

    The phrase specifically implies that there is cruelty that IS necessary. WTF, who wrote that law?

    Wednesday, June 1, 2016 Report this