AR-News: Dog's killers draw a crowd Tribnet.com - News

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Van: Luree [mailto:luree at islandnet.com] 
Verzonden: donderdag 8 april 2004 2:00
Aan: odolsen at mb.sympatico.ca
Onderwerp: Dog's killers draw a crowd Tribnet.com - News

 

 http://www.tribnet.com/news/story/4918526p-4852233c.html
 
Dog's killers draw a crowd 

ROB TUCKER; The News Tribune 

They came seeking justice for a nameless, unclaimed Siberian husky that died tied to a tree. And they brought Alyeska, Myka, Chomper and other Siberian huskies, both purebreds and mixed, to help make their point. 

The demonstrators also held large signs that prompted honks and supportive thumbs-up from people driving past the County-City Building in Tacoma on Friday.

"Brutal dog killers deserve jail," one sign read.

"Maximum sentence for maximum cruelty," declared another.

It remains to be seen whether two Wilkeson men will be convicted of felony animal cruelty, and how much time they might get behind bars. But on Friday, they were sent directly to jail after a brief court appearance.

More than 80 people demonstrated outside the courthouse where Steven Paulson and Troy Loney stood accused of tying a stray dog to a tree and killing it with a bow and arrow last month. They shot it numerous times with the same arrow, pulling it from the animal's body and shooting it again and again, according to charging papers filed in Pierce County Superior Court.

At their arraignment Friday afternoon, Loney, 18, and Paulson, 20, pleaded not guilty while nearly 90 solemn people watched silently through glass windows or waited outside in the hallway.

Defense attorney Dixie Krieg asked that Loney, wearing a gray-green suit, and Paulson, dressed in a black coat and jeans, be booked and released without bail pending a May 19 trial. Both men willingly appeared in court Friday and police saw no need to arrest them after the incident, she said.

But deputy prosecutor Dennis Ashman asked the judge to jail both immediately in lieu of $5,000 bail. He said they were a danger to the community and ticked off their prior convictions, including Loney's first-degree child molestation conviction at age 13 - the crowd moaned loudly when it heard that over the speaker - and Paulson's December forgery conviction, as well as two second-degree burglary convictions in 1999.

Superior Court Judge Beverly Grant, citing the severity of the allegations, sent both to jail immediately, after setting bail at $4,250 for each man. If convicted, each could face a maximum of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine, though sentencing guidelines call for no more than 12 months for a first offense of this type.

Both men remained in jail Friday evening.

Some courtroom spectators said locking up the defendants immediately and setting the bail constituted a good start toward justice.

"I'm certainly glad they're going to jail," said Helena Shelley of Tacoma, who helped organize the outside demonstration. "Now that I've heard their prior history, I'm more outraged."

Susan Michaels of the Pasado's Safehaven animal protection group said after the arraignment that Wilkeson police should have arrested and jailed the two men on March 8, when the killing occurred, or soon after.

"I'm still glad," she said. "The court's responding to what the community wants. We thank the court."

Earlier Friday, people who were horrified and angry about the case gathered to protest cruelty and violence against animals.

Peg Kehret, an author of children's books and a Wilkeson resident, joined in with her husband, Carl.

"Most of the people I talk to are horrified and very upset," she said of Wilkeson residents. "They can't imagine it. It's just awful."

Gail Kirk of Tacoma later noted that more people gathered in Tacoma on a workday to protest the death of a defenseless dog than would ordinarily gather to protest the brutal death of a child. That's understandable, she added.

"There are many laws and regulations in place to protect children," she said. "There are not enough to protect animals. I like to speak for the animals."

So do more than 11,800 people who have apparently signed a petition on a Web site, which includes a News Tribune article about the case and asks for justice.

The Siberian huskies that came to the demonstration with their owners became instant stars. People gathered to pet them and lean affectionately over them. The sociable dogs licked strange hands, wound their leashes around strange legs and wagged their tails incessantly.

Robert Hime of Redmond brought Alyeska, 3, and Myka, 7, both Siberian huskies rescued by the Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue group, where he works as a volunteer, he said.

Chomper, a Siberian husky mixed breed, came with Rachea Daley of Monroe, who said Chomper was saved while in an Everett shelter.

"I wanted to put a face on it," she explained.

Cyndi Michelena of Olalla, the Siberian husky representative for Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue, rejected suggestions that Loney previously made to news reporters that the slain husky was mean and dangerous.

"They have no mean streak," she said of the breed. "They are very much a people's dog. They trust all people."

Speaking for her clients in court, Krieg denied the prosecutor's accusation that they had shot the dog 10 times. Loney previously told The News Tribune that the dog was following them around for a week and a half, and they tried to feed it and find a home for it. He said they eventually "put it out of its misery" with a single arrow shot to the head at point-blank range, then followed up with one more shot to ensure it was dead.

He acknowledged to a reporter that it was a mistake.

Both Loney and Paulson confessed to police that they killed the dog and threw the body into Wilkeson Creek, according to charging papers. The body hasn't been found.

Rob Tucker: 253-597-8374
rob.tucker at mail.tribnet.com

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