Animal Cruelty Cases on the Rise in King County
As of this morning (Dec. 3), the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office (PAO) has filed 19 animal cruelty cases in 2020 — the same number as the past two years combined. And additional cases are expected to be referred by investigators the PAO this month for a felony filing decision.
While a number of factors may be contributing, staff from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office are joining leaders from the Seattle Animal Shelter and Seattle City Attorney’s office to get the word out about this disturbing rise in animal cruelty, and how the public can help.
“I think what you’re hearing from all of is the coming together of our community in recognizing that we all have our areas of specialty, but it takes all of us to address animal cruelty and all of the things that come with it. That’s also needed for a resolution, whether it’s prosecution or mental health help.” — Ann Graves, Executive Director of the Seattle Animal Shelter
Here’s just some of the examples of the cases the PAO has seen in 2020:
A West Seattle man was charged with 17 counts of animal cruelty. The investigation by police is ongoing. This is the case announced in October by the Seattle Animal Shelter and Seattle police. The man was aarged by the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on Nov. 17 after receiving additional investigation details by police.
On Nov. 4, a man was charged by the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office with first-degree animal cruelty, a felony. This stems from an Oct. 30 incident in Seattle’s Crown Hill neighborhood where the defendant is accused of abusing and dragging a cat from a bike.
After receiving a Bellevue Police investigation, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed first-degree felony animal cruelty charges on Oct. 20. The defendant is accused of drowning his cat after drinking. The cat suffered a broken neck. The defendant admitted to police that he had handguns in a condo nearby.
A defendant was charged by the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office with first-degree animal cruelty, a felony. This charge stems from a June police investigation in Federal Way where investigators said Mead was recorded punching and strangling a dog until it died. Charges were filed June 17.
In addition to animal cruelty cases, the PAO has filed two cases involving charges of Animal Fighting, also a felony.
“These are vulnerable populations and we care about them — so many in the community do. We take these cases seriously and are passionate about these animals and holding people accountable.” — Tali Smith, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
How You Can Help
- The Seattle Animal Shelter’s Amazon wish list: https://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/1ZBKOUMN0333D?ref%5F=cm%5Fsw%5Fem%5Fr%5Fz%5Fg%5F%5Fwb&pldnSite=1
- The Seattle Animal Shelter foundation: https://app.etapestry.com/onlineforms/SeattleAnimalShelterFoundat/donate.html
- If you see a life in danger, animals or humans, call 911. If you have information that does not need immediate help, contact the Seattle Animal Shelter at 206–386-PETS (206–386–7387). In other parts of King County you can call the King County Regional Animal Shelter at 206–296–7387 (PETS).
For all case types — animal cruelty, domestic violence, shooting cases — police agencies are the investigative arm. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office does not by law have investigative authority, but we review cases when referred to us from law enforcement. We will continue to independently review cases referred to us for timely case filings, and we will continue our focus on holding defendants accountable before a jury.
