| Pleas made in puppy torture case |
By: Chris Menees, Special to The Press
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Posted: Thursday, September 13, 2012 1:04 pm
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BULLETIN: Preston Odle, 18, of Dresden and Levi Evans, 19, of Greenfield entered a guilty plea to the aggravated animal cruelty charge levied against them during their arraignment Monday in Weakley County Circuit Court. Their sentencing was set for Nov. 8. Two Weakley County teenagers accused of torturing a puppy which later died were indicted this week by a grand jury.
Preston Odle, 18, of Dresden and Levi Evans, 19, of Greenfield were indicted last week on a count of aggravated cruelty to animals, according to the Weakley County Circuit Court clerk’s office.
They were arraigned Monday on the felony offense.
The charge against the two stems from a May incident in which Dresden police discovered a puppy had allegedly been tortured to death.
The Dresden Police Department was contacted about 7:45 p.m. May 15 when a young man and his father went to pick up a dog that reportedly was foaming at the mouth and limping, according to an affidavit.
Dresden Police Chief Randal Walker previously reported a St. Bernard puppy which was about four months old apparently had been given to Odle, who claimed he didn’t want the dog and offered the puppy to a friend. When the friend came back with his father to pick up the animal, they noticed the dog was foaming at the mouth, limping and had a cut on its back.
Walker reported Odle and Evans allegedly admitted to assaulting the puppy. He said the dog had been kicked and suffered broken ribs.
The teens were also accused of wiring the puppy’s mouth shut and wrapping its neck in wire and hanging the animal. Additionally, the dog had sustained a knife wound in the back, police reported.
The puppy died a few hours later as a result.
After Odle and Evans were initially charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, they waived their case to the grand jury during a hearing in June in Weakley County General Sessions Court.
At the June hearing, which was attended by several people representing area animal shelters, a judge had ruled the two young men had to meet certain conditions until their September arraignment.
after grand jury, including continuing counseling, not having contact with animals and biding by a curfew.
WCP 9.11.12
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