SATC actor on trial for pummeling girlfriend's cat to death

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_c..._was_terr.html
Joseph Petcka testifies that he was terrorized by Lisa Altobelli's
7-lb. cat

By BARBARA ROSS and LARRY McSHANE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Friday, September 19th 2008

A 6-foot-2, 205-pound witness today recounted his night of terror:
knocked to the ground, blood bubbling from his hand, kicking madly at
his relentless attacker - a 7-pound tabby.

"He was coming at my legs," claimed ex-minor league pitcher Joseph
Petcka, detailing three separate attacks by his girlfriend's pet cat,
Norman. Petcka is claiming self-defense in the March 27, 2007, death
of the 8-year-old kitty.

Despite a substantial advantage in weight, height - and, presumably -
smarts, the 37-year-old Petcka said he was "in shock" after the cat
bit his hand as he slept on a couch.

RELATED VET GIVES GRUESOME TESTIMONY
Norman stormed at him a second time, knocking Petcka flat on his rear
end, he told the Manhattan jury.

"He lunged, throwing me on my butt, on the coffee table," Petcka
testified under cross-examination from Assistant District Attorney
Leila Kermani.

"Did you feel threatened?" Kermani asked.

"Yes," he replied.

Petcka, who also appeared on "Sex and the City," said he unleashed a
half-dozen bicycle kicks at the kitty - which bit him once again on
the knuckle of his right thumb. He was unsure if any of the kicks
landed.

Petcka pantomimed the entire confrontation for the jury, insisting he
and Norman seemed fine after their battle inside the apartment of
girlfriend Lisa Altobelli.

Norman was walking and seemed uninjured when he went into a bedroom
after the encounter, he said. The cat was later found dead beneath a
bedside table, with massive injuries that included broken ribs, a
ripped lung and a torn liver.

Petcka could face up to two years in prison if convicted in the animal
cruelty case. The jury is expected to begin deliberations Monday.


http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/..._cat_she_.html
'Monster' Joseph Petcka killed my cat, she testifies about ex-Met
boyfriend

By BARBARA ROSS and DAVE GOLDINER
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Thursday, September 18th 2008


Joseph Petcka is charged with felony cruelty in the beating death of
Lisa Altobelli’s cat, Norman (above).

Hermann for News

Petcka is a former Mets prospect and bit-part actor.

Altobelli leaves court after testifying.
A "Sex and the City" actor's claim that he killed his girlfriend's cat
in self-defense suffered a blow Wednesday with revelations that the
tabby was declawed.

Joseph Petcka, who is on trial on charges of felony cruelty, claims he
was being attacked by the 7-pound pussy named Norman when he pummeled
the animal to death.

Norman's heartbroken owner, Lisa Altobelli, told a Manhattan Supreme
Court jury a far different story Wednesday, describing Petcka's
jealous rage toward the creature.

READ MO 'YOU LOVE THAT CAT MORE THAN YOU LOVE ME!'
Weeping on the witness stand, she recounted finding her beloved pet's
battered body under a bedside table after a quarrel with Petcka on the
night of March 27, 2007. "He was dead," Altobelli said. "I put my hand
there. He was cold and stiff."

She picked up the phone and called Petcka, 37, a handsome bit-part
actor with a short fuse who once played minor league baseball for the
Mets.

"What kind of monster could kill an innocent cat?" she remembered
asking him. He just hung up, she said.

Altobelli said she previously had sensed something was amiss between
her boyfriend and cat, which she testified had been declawed.

She described an earlier incident that happened after she had been
dating Petcka - who once appeared on "Sex and the City" and in Brawny
paper towel ads - for several weeks.

She returned to her Tribeca apartment to find the gentle,
orange-and-white cat terrified and soaking wet.

"He was hissing [at Petcka]," Altobelli, a Sports Illustrated writer
testified. "Obviously, that was a huge red flag."

On the night Norman was killed, Petcka had been drinking heavily and
the couple began quarreling, she said. "You love Norman more than me!"
Petcka exclaimed, Altobelli testified.

She went to sleep and recalled hearing Petcka talking to the cat in a
singsong voice, "Norman, Norman, Norman."

Altobelli said she abruptly woke up after Petcka kneed her in the side
and grabbed her neck. He claimed the cat had bitten him.

She took her purse and ran out of the apartment after warning Petcka
to leave or she would call the police, Altobelli said.

The last thing she saw, she said, was Norman looking plaintively at
her. "I honestly thought he [the cat] would be right behind me," she
said. "I thought he would flee."

An ASPCA official is expected to testify Thursday that the cat died
from an extensive beating that caused broken ribs and massive internal
injuries.

Petcka, who faces two years in prison if convicted, also is expected
to take the stand.

On Sep 19, 8:19*pm, tragic wrote:
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_c...8-09-19_joseph...
Joseph Petcka testifies that he was terrorized by Lisa Altobelli's
7-lb. cat

By BARBARA ROSS and LARRY McSHANE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Friday, September 19th 2008

A 6-foot-2, 205-pound witness today recounted his night of terror:
knocked to the ground, blood bubbling from his hand, kicking madly at
his relentless attacker - a 7-pound tabby.

"He was coming at my legs," claimed ex-minor league pitcher Joseph
Petcka, detailing three separate attacks by his girlfriend's pet cat,
Norman. Petcka is claiming self-defense in the March 27, 2007, death
of the 8-year-old kitty.

Despite a substantial advantage in weight, height - and, presumably -
smarts, the 37-year-old Petcka said he was "in shock" after the cat
bit his hand as he slept on a couch.

RELATED VET GIVES GRUESOME TESTIMONY
Norman stormed at him a second time, knocking Petcka flat on his rear
end, he told the Manhattan jury.

"He lunged, throwing me on my butt, on the coffee table," Petcka
testified under cross-examination from Assistant District Attorney
Leila Kermani.

"Did you feel threatened?" Kermani asked.

"Yes," he replied.

Petcka, who also appeared on "Sex and the City," said he unleashed a
half-dozen bicycle kicks at the kitty - which bit him once again on
the knuckle of his right thumb. He was unsure if any of the kicks
landed.

Petcka pantomimed the entire confrontation for the jury, insisting he
and Norman seemed fine after their battle inside the apartment of
girlfriend Lisa Altobelli.

Norman was walking and seemed uninjured when he went into a bedroom
after the encounter, he said. The cat was later found dead beneath a
bedside table, with massive injuries that included broken ribs, a
ripped lung and a torn liver.

Petcka could face up to two years in prison if convicted in the animal
cruelty case. The jury is expected to begin deliberations Monday.

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/...17_monster_jos...
'Monster' Joseph Petcka killed my cat, she testifies about ex-Met
boyfriend

By BARBARA ROSS and DAVE GOLDINER
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Thursday, September 18th 2008

Joseph Petcka is charged with felony cruelty in the beating death of
Lisa Altobelli’s cat, Norman (above).

Hermann for News

Petcka is a former Mets prospect and bit-part actor.

Altobelli leaves court after testifying.
A "Sex and the City" actor's claim that he killed his girlfriend's cat
in self-defense suffered a blow Wednesday with revelations that the
tabby was declawed.

Joseph Petcka, who is on trial on charges of felony cruelty, claims he
was being attacked by the 7-pound pussy named Norman when he pummeled
the animal to death.

Norman's heartbroken owner, Lisa Altobelli, told a Manhattan Supreme
Court jury a far different story Wednesday, describing Petcka's
jealous rage toward the creature.

READ MO 'YOU LOVE THAT CAT MORE THAN YOU LOVE ME!'
Weeping on the witness stand, she recounted finding her beloved pet's
battered body under a bedside table after a quarrel with Petcka on the
night of March 27, 2007. "He was dead," Altobelli said. "I put my hand
there. He was cold and stiff."

She picked up the phone and called Petcka, 37, a handsome bit-part
actor with a short fuse who once played minor league baseball for the
Mets.

"What kind of monster could kill an innocent cat?" she remembered
asking him. He just hung up, she said.

Altobelli said she previously had sensed something was amiss between
her boyfriend and cat, which she testified had been declawed.

She described an earlier incident that happened after she had been
dating Petcka - who once appeared on "Sex and the City" and in Brawny
paper towel ads - for several weeks.

She returned to her Tribeca apartment to find the gentle,
orange-and-white cat terrified and soaking wet.

"He was hissing [at Petcka]," Altobelli, a Sports Illustrated writer
testified. "Obviously, that was a huge red flag."

On the night Norman was killed, Petcka had been drinking heavily and
the couple began quarreling, she said. "You love Norman more than me!"
Petcka exclaimed, Altobelli testified.

She went to sleep and recalled hearing Petcka talking to the cat in a
singsong voice, "Norman, Norman, Norman."

Altobelli said she abruptly woke up after Petcka kneed her in the side
and grabbed her neck. He claimed the cat had bitten him.

She took her purse and ran out of the apartment after warning Petcka
to leave or she would call the police, Altobelli said.

The last thing she saw, she said, was Norman looking plaintively at
her. "I honestly thought he [the cat] would be right behind me," she
said. "I thought he would flee."

An ASPCA official is expected to testify Thursday that the cat died
from an extensive beating that caused broken ribs and massive internal
injuries.

Petcka, who faces two years in prison if convicted, also is expected
to take the stand.

My boyfriend Rauns cat terrorized me for months! The little bitch
attacked me and forced me to stand on top of a chair! Finally I told
him that I won't give him any until he stops this madness!