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Man may get 25 years for killing dog.
Once, just once, it looks like someone may get what they deserve for
animal cruelty at it's worst. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime/ci_...nclick_check=1 Man faces third strike in dog's death FELONY CHARGE FILED IN SAVAGE KILLING By Brandon Bailey Mercury News Article Launched: 10/19/2007 01:30:29 AM PDT Click photo to enlarge Authorities say cocker spaniel was killed by its owner's boyfriend * « * 1 * » Alex Castro didn't like his girlfriend's dog. The 10-year-old cocker spaniel named Copper would bark and whine, neighbors told police, and the 46-year-old Milpitas man responded by kicking the dog, choking it and throwing it into the air. Late one night, a woman in his trailer park said she saw Castro carrying the dog's lifeless body by the neck. "I finally did it," Castro told another neighbor, who relayed the statement to authorities, according to court records. "I kicked him and he was yelping so loud I had to kill him, so I took my hammer and put a hole in his head." What happened to Copper has outraged pet lovers and drawn the attention of a nationwide animal-rights group. What happens to Castro may prompt a debate: Prosecutors have invoked the state's "three strikes, you're out" law because Castro has prior convictions for violent crimes. He now faces a possible sentence of 25 years to life in prison. The sometime construction worker is scheduled to appear in court today on a felony charge of animal cruelty on suspicion of killing the dog July 31. "People in the community are clearly going to have an emotional response to this kind of case," said Castro's attorney, deputy public defender Ross McMahon. "The real question, however, is: Do we as a society feel that this alleged conduct merits a life sentence?" A judge will decide the penalty if Castro is convicted. But prosecutors in the Santa Clara County district attorney's office Advertisement said the crime and Castro's prior record meet their criteria for seeking a "three strikes" sentence. Castro's record includes felony convictions, in separate cases, for assault with a deadly weapon and battery resulting in serious injury. He served three years in prison and a series of shorter stints for six parole violations from 1999 to 2004. Court records detailing those cases were not immediately available. But Castro's girlfriend, Joanie Gonzalez, said he told her one case stemmed from a bar brawl in which he used a metal pipe to crack the skull of a man fighting with Castro's father. The other supposedly occurred when Castro severely choked a man who made unwelcome comments to a former girlfriend. Gonzalez, 47, said she's horrified by what happened to Copper, the dog she raised since it was a puppy. Still, she said, she isn't sure Castro should spend the rest of his life behind bars. "I loved my dog like my kids," she said, "but that's a long time." Gonzalez said she met Castro in 2005 and thought he was turning his life around. But after her neighbors found the dog's body and called police, Gonzalez said she told Castro she didn't want anything more to do with him. "It's hard because I cared about him," she added. "We had planned to spend our life together." A local animal-welfare official, without endorsing a specific penalty, said the dog's death should be treated as a serious crime. "It's been clearly documented that with this kind of thing, there's a very strong correlation with future or current violence against people," said Jon Cicirelli, deputy director for San Jose's Animal Care & Services agency, which works under contract for the city of Milpitas and helped police investigate the case. Gonzalez declined to say if Castro was abusive to her, but police said she told them he was verbally abusive and that she had "physical confrontations" with him last year. The case first drew attention when the weekly Milpitas Post published a story about the dog's death. The activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals posted a summary on its Web site and urged readers to contact District Attorney Dolores Carr. "This strikes me as one of the more cowardly attacks that I've read about," said Martin Mersereau, a PETA spokesman. "We're talking about an elderly, defenseless animal who had his head bashed in." Though prosecutors received e-mails from people who saw the PETA posting, Assistant District Attorney David Tomkins said that didn't affect their decision. As with every "three strikes" case filed by his office, Tomkins said a committee of senior prosecutors reviewed Castro's file. He said the decision to charge Castro with a felony, which made him eligible for a "three strikes" sentence because of his record, was consistent with similar cases of animal abuse. The committee looked for any extenuating circumstances that would justify dropping one or both "strikes," Tomkins said. "We decided there wasn't." Prosecutors can revise the charges against Castro if they get new information, Tomkins noted. "Perhaps there's a side of him that we're not aware of, some type of mitigating circumstances that the defense will make us aware of, and if they do we'll certainly consider that." Castro is being held in lieu of $950,000 bail in the Santa Clara County Jail. I hope he gets the maximum possible sentence. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Life without cats would be only marginally worth living." -TC, and the unmercifully, relentlessly, sweet calico kitty, Kenzie. How you behave towards cats here below determines your status in Heaven. - Robert Heinlein Life is very difficult. Once you understand that, life becomes easier. -Buddha |
#2
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Man may get 25 years for killing dog.
On Oct 22, 10:09 pm, (Gandalf) wrote:
Once, just once, it looks like someone may get what they deserve for animal cruelty at it's worst. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime/ci_...nclick_check=1 Man faces third strike in dog's death FELONY CHARGE FILED IN SAVAGE KILLING By Brandon Bailey Mercury News Article Launched: 10/19/2007 01:30:29 AM PDT Click photo to enlarge Authorities say cocker spaniel was killed by its owner's boyfriend * « * 1 * » Alex Castro didn't like his girlfriend's dog. The 10-year-old cocker spaniel named Copper would bark and whine, neighbors told police, and the 46-year-old Milpitas man responded by kicking the dog, choking it and throwing it into the air. Late one night, a woman in his trailer park said she saw Castro carrying the dog's lifeless body by the neck. "I finally did it," Castro told another neighbor, who relayed the statement to authorities, according to court records. "I kicked him and he was yelping so loud I had to kill him, so I took my hammer and put a hole in his head." What happened to Copper has outraged pet lovers and drawn the attention of a nationwide animal-rights group. What happens to Castro may prompt a debate: Prosecutors have invoked the state's "three strikes, you're out" law because Castro has prior convictions for violent crimes. He now faces a possible sentence of 25 years to life in prison. The sometime construction worker is scheduled to appear in court today on a felony charge of animal cruelty on suspicion of killing the dog July 31. "People in the community are clearly going to have an emotional response to this kind of case," said Castro's attorney, deputy public defender Ross McMahon. "The real question, however, is: Do we as a society feel that this alleged conduct merits a life sentence?" A judge will decide the penalty if Castro is convicted. But prosecutors in the Santa Clara County district attorney's office Advertisement said the crime and Castro's prior record meet their criteria for seeking a "three strikes" sentence. Castro's record includes felony convictions, in separate cases, for assault with a deadly weapon and battery resulting in serious injury. He served three years in prison and a series of shorter stints for six parole violations from 1999 to 2004. Court records detailing those cases were not immediately available. But Castro's girlfriend, Joanie Gonzalez, said he told her one case stemmed from a bar brawl in which he used a metal pipe to crack the skull of a man fighting with Castro's father. The other supposedly occurred when Castro severely choked a man who made unwelcome comments to a former girlfriend. Gonzalez, 47, said she's horrified by what happened to Copper, the dog she raised since it was a puppy. Still, she said, she isn't sure Castro should spend the rest of his life behind bars. "I loved my dog like my kids," she said, "but that's a long time." Gonzalez said she met Castro in 2005 and thought he was turning his life around. But after her neighbors found the dog's body and called police, Gonzalez said she told Castro she didn't want anything more to do with him. "It's hard because I cared about him," she added. "We had planned to spend our life together." A local animal-welfare official, without endorsing a specific penalty, said the dog's death should be treated as a serious crime. "It's been clearly documented that with this kind of thing, there's a very strong correlation with future or current violence against people," said Jon Cicirelli, deputy director for San Jose's Animal Care & Services agency, which works under contract for the city of Milpitas and helped police investigate the case. Gonzalez declined to say if Castro was abusive to her, but police said she told them he was verbally abusive and that she had "physical confrontations" with him last year. The case first drew attention when the weekly Milpitas Post published a story about the dog's death. The activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals posted a summary on its Web site and urged readers to contact District Attorney Dolores Carr. "This strikes me as one of the more cowardly attacks that I've read about," said Martin Mersereau, a PETA spokesman. "We're talking about an elderly, defenseless animal who had his head bashed in." Though prosecutors received e-mails from people who saw the PETA posting, Assistant District Attorney David Tomkins said that didn't affect their decision. As with every "three strikes" case filed by his office, Tomkins said a committee of senior prosecutors reviewed Castro's file. He said the decision to charge Castro with a felony, which made him eligible for a "three strikes" sentence because of his record, was consistent with similar cases of animal abuse. The committee looked for any extenuating circumstances that would justify dropping one or both "strikes," Tomkins said. "We decided there wasn't." Prosecutors can revise the charges against Castro if they get new information, Tomkins noted. "Perhaps there's a side of him that we're not aware of, some type of mitigating circumstances that the defense will make us aware of, and if they do we'll certainly consider that." Castro is being held in lieu of $950,000 bail in the Santa Clara County Jail. I hope he gets the maximum possible sentence. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Life without cats would be only marginally worth living." -TC, and the unmercifully, relentlessly, sweet calico kitty, Kenzie. How you behave towards cats here below determines your status in Heaven. - Robert Heinlein Life is very difficult. Once you understand that, life becomes easier. -Buddha Me too. What a jerk. That woman should be GLAD if he gets locked up and kept out of her life. Better to be alone than in an abusive relationship. And the poor dog. =o( May Copper be happier on the far side of the Rainbow Bridge. Melissa |
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Man may get 25 years for killing dog.
If she loved the dog lke her kid, glad I am not her kid! She better thank
God it wasn't her head bashed in. I would bet that she is being abused also and hasn't got the where with all to recogenize it. "Gandalf" wrote in message ... Once, just once, it looks like someone may get what they deserve for animal cruelty at it's worst. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime/ci_...nclick_check=1 Man faces third strike in dog's death FELONY CHARGE FILED IN SAVAGE KILLING By Brandon Bailey Mercury News Article Launched: 10/19/2007 01:30:29 AM PDT Click photo to enlarge Authorities say cocker spaniel was killed by its owner's boyfriend * « * 1 * » Alex Castro didn't like his girlfriend's dog. The 10-year-old cocker spaniel named Copper would bark and whine, neighbors told police, and the 46-year-old Milpitas man responded by kicking the dog, choking it and throwing it into the air. Late one night, a woman in his trailer park said she saw Castro carrying the dog's lifeless body by the neck. "I finally did it," Castro told another neighbor, who relayed the statement to authorities, according to court records. "I kicked him and he was yelping so loud I had to kill him, so I took my hammer and put a hole in his head." What happened to Copper has outraged pet lovers and drawn the attention of a nationwide animal-rights group. What happens to Castro may prompt a debate: Prosecutors have invoked the state's "three strikes, you're out" law because Castro has prior convictions for violent crimes. He now faces a possible sentence of 25 years to life in prison. The sometime construction worker is scheduled to appear in court today on a felony charge of animal cruelty on suspicion of killing the dog July 31. "People in the community are clearly going to have an emotional response to this kind of case," said Castro's attorney, deputy public defender Ross McMahon. "The real question, however, is: Do we as a society feel that this alleged conduct merits a life sentence?" A judge will decide the penalty if Castro is convicted. But prosecutors in the Santa Clara County district attorney's office Advertisement said the crime and Castro's prior record meet their criteria for seeking a "three strikes" sentence. Castro's record includes felony convictions, in separate cases, for assault with a deadly weapon and battery resulting in serious injury. He served three years in prison and a series of shorter stints for six parole violations from 1999 to 2004. Court records detailing those cases were not immediately available. But Castro's girlfriend, Joanie Gonzalez, said he told her one case stemmed from a bar brawl in which he used a metal pipe to crack the skull of a man fighting with Castro's father. The other supposedly occurred when Castro severely choked a man who made unwelcome comments to a former girlfriend. Gonzalez, 47, said she's horrified by what happened to Copper, the dog she raised since it was a puppy. Still, she said, she isn't sure Castro should spend the rest of his life behind bars. "I loved my dog like my kids," she said, "but that's a long time." Gonzalez said she met Castro in 2005 and thought he was turning his life around. But after her neighbors found the dog's body and called police, Gonzalez said she told Castro she didn't want anything more to do with him. "It's hard because I cared about him," she added. "We had planned to spend our life together." A local animal-welfare official, without endorsing a specific penalty, said the dog's death should be treated as a serious crime. "It's been clearly documented that with this kind of thing, there's a very strong correlation with future or current violence against people," said Jon Cicirelli, deputy director for San Jose's Animal Care & Services agency, which works under contract for the city of Milpitas and helped police investigate the case. Gonzalez declined to say if Castro was abusive to her, but police said she told them he was verbally abusive and that she had "physical confrontations" with him last year. The case first drew attention when the weekly Milpitas Post published a story about the dog's death. The activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals posted a summary on its Web site and urged readers to contact District Attorney Dolores Carr. "This strikes me as one of the more cowardly attacks that I've read about," said Martin Mersereau, a PETA spokesman. "We're talking about an elderly, defenseless animal who had his head bashed in." Though prosecutors received e-mails from people who saw the PETA posting, Assistant District Attorney David Tomkins said that didn't affect their decision. As with every "three strikes" case filed by his office, Tomkins said a committee of senior prosecutors reviewed Castro's file. He said the decision to charge Castro with a felony, which made him eligible for a "three strikes" sentence because of his record, was consistent with similar cases of animal abuse. The committee looked for any extenuating circumstances that would justify dropping one or both "strikes," Tomkins said. "We decided there wasn't." Prosecutors can revise the charges against Castro if they get new information, Tomkins noted. "Perhaps there's a side of him that we're not aware of, some type of mitigating circumstances that the defense will make us aware of, and if they do we'll certainly consider that." Castro is being held in lieu of $950,000 bail in the Santa Clara County Jail. I hope he gets the maximum possible sentence. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Life without cats would be only marginally worth living." -TC, and the unmercifully, relentlessly, sweet calico kitty, Kenzie. How you behave towards cats here below determines your status in Heaven. - Robert Heinlein Life is very difficult. Once you understand that, life becomes easier. -Buddha |
#4
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Man may get 25 years for killing dog.
Gandalf wrote:
Once, just once, it looks like someone may get what they deserve for animal cruelty at it's worst. We can only pray! "The real question, however, is: Do we as a society feel that this alleged conduct merits a life sentence?" Any society that doesn't think this behavior merits a life sentence can't call itself civilised Gonzalez, 47, said she's horrified by what happened to Copper, the dog she raised since it was a puppy. Still, she said, she isn't sure Castro should spend the rest of his life behind bars. "I loved my dog like my kids," she said, "but that's a long time." Not long enough! Given his previous form I will be delighted if this psychopath is kept out of harms way for the rest of his life- pity for poor Copper he didn't get sent down for good after the first offence. And she should be on her knees thanking whatever deity she worships that he isn't up on the charge of murdering her because he would have sooner or later! Lesley Slave of the Fabulous Furballs -- Message posted via CatKB.com http://www.catkb.com/Uwe/Forums.aspx...dotes/200710/1 |
#5
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Man may get 25 years for killing dog.
Gandalf wrote:
Once, just once, it looks like someone may get what they deserve for animal cruelty at it's worst. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime/ci_...nclick_check=1 Man faces third strike in dog's death FELONY CHARGE FILED IN SAVAGE KILLING By Brandon Bailey Mercury News Article Launched: 10/19/2007 01:30:29 AM PDT Click photo to enlarge Authorities say cocker spaniel was killed by its owner's boyfriend Alex Castro didn't like his girlfriend's dog. The 10-year-old cocker spaniel named Copper would bark and whine, neighbors told police, and the 46-year-old Milpitas man responded by kicking the dog, choking it and throwing it into the air. (snip) Gonzalez, 47, said she's horrified by what happened to Copper, the dog she raised since it was a puppy. Still, she said, she isn't sure Castro should spend the rest of his life behind bars. "I loved my dog like my kids," she said, "but that's a long time." I do *not* understand people like this. She knows he was abusing the dog. Why would she want to spend her life with someone like this???? It wasn't until after he killed the dog and he's about to be sentenced that she told him they were through? That's just nuts. Jill |
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Man may get 25 years for killing dog.
Gandalf wrote: Once, just once, it looks like someone may get what they deserve for animal cruelty at it's worst. There was a fair amount of discussion in the Phoenix area about a K-9 officer who left his dog in a car for ten hours, one day last summer - when the outdoor temperature was running around 115F! The dog died, of course. The officer had no good explanation for why he'd leave the dog shut in a car. Usually these guys are the dogs' caretakers, keep them in their own homes, and certainly are taught proper treatment of them. I have many areas of disagreement with the Maricopa county sheriff, who arrested the officer for his poor judgement, but this time I think he was right on! I think the guy only received a fine and a suspended sentence, but he also lost his job. |
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