Man faces felony charge in dog killing

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August 27, 2009

By HEATHER PYLES, Staff Writer The Commonwealth Journal Thu Aug 27, 2009, 09:17 PM EDT

Somerset — Charges handed down on a man who allegedly poisoned and kicked his pet dog to death in front of neighbors have been upgraded.

Robert Suttles, 50, of Somerset, appeared before Judge Katie Wood in Pulaski County District Court Thursday and saw his second-degree animal cruelty charge, a class A misdemeanor, upgraded to torture of a dog or cat, which is a class D felony.

That charge is based on an incident that allegedly began on June 30 when Suttles, reportedly angry that his neighbors had called 911 emergency and law enforcement personnel repeatedly to report that he wasn’t feeding or watering his dog, Bowser, a Labrador mix, forced “a rolled up piece of bread which had to contain anti-freeze or some type of poison, down the dog’s throat,” according to the citation obtained from the Pulaski County courthouse.

According to that document, Bowser immediately “laid down and never got back up.”

The dog died on July 2, two days after the poisoning, after Suttles allegedly “kicked the dog in the head several times while it was ... dying,” according to the citation.

Suttles then dragged the dog to a burn barrel and burned it, according to the citation. It’s uncertain whether the dog was alive or dead when it was burned.

Suttles allegedly harassed his neighbors after the incident by driving up his driveway and barking.

Should he be found guilty of the felony charge, Suttles would receive one to five years in jail and he would be required to forfeit any animals he may own. His future ownership of animals would also be restricted.

Animal rights activists who have been closely following the case are asking that Suttles undergo a psychological evaluation as well.

Suttles is still being held in the Pulaski County Detention Center on a $7,500 bond.

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