Dogs line almost every hallway at HSPC’s building off of Colonel Glenn Road – all once evidence in the Lonoke County prosecutor’s case against Sandra Nance, the woman accused of animal negligence at her breeding facility. The case dragged on for two years before being decided in May. Andrea Underwood, president of the board at the Humane Society of Pulaski County, said the judge chose only 13 dogs at random to be part of the court case against Nance. Underwood claims having 160+ dogs involved in the case would have tied up the case even longer. “They looked at 13 animals and of the 13 animals she was convicted of five counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty,” recounted Underwood. The five dogs in the deemed “abused” in the case will remain with HSPC, but the other 164 dogs will return to Nance. The case went to all the way to the Arkansas Supreme Court, but they determined they had no jurisdiction in the case. Relegated back to Lonoke County the judge ruled in favor of Nance. “A lot of the dogs were heavily matted,” said Teresa Medlock, staff veterinarian for HSPC. “A lot of them had medical issues that needed to be addressed – you know eye injuries, eye infections, skin infections, fleas.” And the Humane Society believes returning the dogs to Nance would be a huge mistake. “We don’t have a choice,” said Underwood. “We have a court order and if we don’t comply with that court order then we will be held in contempt of court and have charges filed against us.” Nance’s attorney, Jerry Sallings, said his client maintains she took good care of the animals and adds that she was concerned for the dogs well-being in the custody of HSPC.
Posted on: Tue, 05 Aug 2014 16:31:54 +0000
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