COLUMBUS -- A Platte County Court judge said rudeness by a dog owner trying to retrieve her family pet may have triggered a hard-nosed attitude by animal control officers and contributed to a 54-year-old Columbus woman being convicted of animal cruelty.
That was the assessment of Judge Linda Senff from the bench in sentencing Sharlene Sjogren to the maximum fine of $1,000 for the Class I misdemeanor while rejecting a recommendation by Deputy Platte County Attorney Mandy Trout for a two-day jail term.
“One of things that concerns me is your demeanor,’’ Senff told the Columbus woman during a recent sentencing hearing in county court.
The judge said Sjogren was “flippant” with animal control officers when she went to retrieve her pet and that the officers may not have reacted professionally during their initial encounter with the defendant last fall.
The defendant had gone to retrieve the family pet, Puddles, a male bichon fris© dog aged 10 to 13 years old, who had been picked up by animal control after getting loose in September.
Court documents in the case revealed that animal control officers told Sjogren she should get medical treatment for her seriously ill pet or consider putting the animal to sleep.
The postures of the defendant and the animal control officers may have led to all the parties involved becoming too emotionally invested in the case, Senff said.
“I’m convinced the sentence I’m imposing is appropriate,’’ said Senff, adding she was trying to balance the defendant’s lack of a previous criminal record and the fact the dog was a family pet while also taking into account the suffering of the animal.
The sentence came after Sjogren, a licensed practical nurse at Columbus Community Hospital who is studying to become a registered nurse, spoke briefly to the judge.
“I take complete responsibility,’’ Sjogren said. “I loved Puddles, and I am truly sorry.’’
A six-member county court jury didn’t deliberate for long to convict Sjogren, taking less than an hour to convict the city woman of animal cruelty after a one-day trial in June.
A presentence investigation report filed in the case also recommended the sentence include time in the county jail. The judge also spurned Trout’s recommendation that Sjogren’s sentence include one year of probation with the stipulation she not own or possess an animal.
Sjogren continued to show an apparent lack of responsibility for the treatment of the dog even after her conviction by a jury, Trout said, explaining her reasoning in seeking a jail term in the case.
“The jury listened to the evidence and saw the photos, but even after being convicted by a jury of her peers, she did not see that she’d done anything wrong,’’ Trout said.
A Class I misdemeanor is punishable by a maximum of one year imprisonment, $1,000 fine or both and no minimum sentence.
The case revolved around the care of a pet who was becoming more and more feeble late last year. The dog was already seriously ill when he was initially picked up by animal control officers in September
The small, sturdy breed resembles a small poodle, standing about 9 to 12 inches tall and weighing seven to 12 pounds. Bichons have a textured outer coat lined with a soft undercoat, which makes good grooming practices important.
Because bichons are so susceptible to skin problems and allergies, good grooming practices are very important. Bichon fris©s should be professionally groomed at least once every three months.
Puddles, who was blind and had infected skin sores and was pulling out patches of his own coat, escaped out the door of the Sjogren home in late-November.
The dog was picked up for a second time on the afternoon of Nov. 27 and Sjogren was cited by Animal Control Officer Donna Winig for animal neglect and a second offense of animal at-large.
The dog was put to sleep a couple of days later.
Columbus veterinarian Todd Paczosa testified as a prosecution witness at Sjogren’s trial, but declined to comment on his testimony. The vet cited client/doctor privilege as the reason for his silence.
The doctor did say the bichon fris© breed is a long, curly-haired dog that requires regular grooming and bathing.
Animal control gave Sjogren “every opportunity” to care for her dog, Trout said. “They did their job.”
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