Two women in Liverpool were sentenced to one year in prison for allowing their dog to starve until it mauled and killed an elderly man.
Hayley Sulley, 30, and Della Woods, 29, showed themselves to be truly horrible individuals when they neglected their large Presa Canario breed with disastrous results.
Retired hospital porter Clifford Clarke had just celebrated his 79th birthday the day before he was attacked by Charlie, the neglected animal.
Sadly, this incident could have been avoided if authorities had taken action sooner.
Neighbors reported seeing the dog behaving dangerously but were told it would take four hours for a response from dog wardens.
By the time armed officers arrived at Clarke’s backyard it was too late; he had already been eaten alive by a crazed animal that was so hungry it attempted to eat plastic bowls and bird seed in its desperation for food.
In court proceedings Judge Mark Brown declared, “Mr. Clarke suffered a horrific death, and you have taken away from his family the love and companionship he would have provided” as he sentenced Sulley and Woods each to one year in prison on three counts of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal and breaching the Dangerous Dogs Act.
It was also noted that while this Presa Canario breed is renowned for being powerful, it wasn’t banned where they lived.
Prosecutor Gary Simpson added that, “Their failure to make sure the dog was cared for and under control has led to a man’s death and they must now come to terms with that. Our thoughts are with the family of Mr. Clarke at this sad time”.
Shockingly enough, these women managed to avoid manslaughter charges despite having caused a death due to extreme negligence towards Charlie.
Even more appalling is that these women received only twelve months behind bars despite leaving an innocent man dead which brings up serious questions about our justice system today.
How can we ensure people will think twice before neglecting animals if such severe punishment isn’t handed out?
How can we prevent similar deaths from occurring again?
