Maximum sentence for California man who tossed dog into traffic

Rich or poor, I don't care. The guy killed somebody's pet, and he got what he deserved. The first thing he went for is a living, breathing animal, a pet in the back seat!? That's all I had to hear! And he claimed he picked up and threw the dog after it bit him. Why in the world was he reaching through the window!? Everybody knows that when people get a pet, it isn't window dressing. It's for companionship. Like HUMANS! Enjoy prison pal! And several things stuck out when I read this story:

"It's a case of rage-induced violence," the judge said. "I believe that prison can send a message and it can deter."

and. . .
"Words can never convey the depth of love I had for my dog Leo," McBurnett testified Friday. "His clear intent was to terrorize me in the fastest and clearest way he could under the circumstances."

and. . .

McBurnett and other witnesses testified that Burnett yelled at her, reached through her open car window, grabbed the dog and hurled it into traffic.

The 10-year-old pet was struck seconds later and Burnett sped away

and. . .

Burnett told the ABC News show "20/20" he did not come forward because he was nervous. "I felt that this wasn't a crime, and I thought that it would just blow over," he said.

Police said an anonymous e-mail tipped them to Burnett, who has been jailed since Jan. 4 on charges connected to the disappearance of a van from his employer, Pacific Bell, that was filled with $68,000 worth of equipment.

Say hi to Brutus for me freak!



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Pigs are about as smart as dogs, yet we abuse them and eat them every day. Where is the logical outrage??



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"I felt that it wasn't a crime..."

That statement alone deserves jail time. Maybe if he wasn't such an idiot and could keep his mouth shut, the judge wouldn't have been so hard on him.

SpaceGhost, of course "people getting killed" cases take precedence over animal abuse cases. I'm sure they weren't spending that much money or trying THAT hard to find the guy. It's because they got a tip. It's still a crime and no crime goes unpunished if the perpetrator can be apprehended. There are a lot of criminal acts with harsh punishments that aren't justified....why not this one? Is it that hard to believe that this type of crime might one day garner a prison sentence? Granted, the judge went with the maximum but the dude is a moron...cry when you show remorse. Pretend if you don't mean it. You better put on a good show or else. I guess the "or else" hit home. Besides, people who have been busted in possession of casual drugs and casual amounts are doing plenty of prison time. Why?
Because life isn't f#cking fair and everyone has differences of opinion over what sentences should be for any crime...that's why! Alot of laws and judges don't come across as fair. That's the American justice system for you!

The reason the award is so high is because pet owners know the bond between pet and owner. They would want the same kind of support from someone else. All these shelters and animal organizations raise money in no time at all. Hell, that dog gouging eye case here...some lady from a shelter or animal org. called up Russ Martin on 105.3 and stated her case about that dog. They have a huge reward as well.

Oh yeah...I own two dogs and if some guy did that to one of my dogs, then I would attack his ass in a rage(or die trying) and worry about sentencing later. Rage versus rage.
Would I be justified if I hurt him badly after he did that to my dog and threw me in a rage? Dunno...but it would be a good one on CourtTV!
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[This message has been edited by Surfguy (edited July 13, 2001).]

 

Can anyone honestly come here and claim that this is not a case totally shaped by the media?

I would imagine that hundreds if not thousands of animals are beaten, tortured, or killed each day by their owners without any sort of retribution. Nor does anyone really care! We know these things happen, and we take them for granted.

This is a case of the public being shocked that a person would actually kill a defenseless animal just over road rage. And, *gasp*, the owner had to watch her beloved pet die in front of her own eyes. Well, not to be callous, but please, cry me a f'ing river. I've read so many stories involving road rage where a guy cuts off another person in traffic or rear ends them, only to get shot in the head or become the victim of some terrible act of violence in response. In MANY of these incidents, the person's spouse or children, being in the car, has to watch this incident, as well as suffer the unbearable consequences of the enraged person's actions. Yet no one really cares, a day or two after reading the story in the paper. How about the story where a man in the D/FW area shoots his two children while talking to his ex-wife on the phone? Pretty sick, but I didn't hear anything more about it after about a week.

Why is this story so compelling? Because it is a somewhat original story, and everyone knows that humans, being somewhat mindless creatures, are most sensitive to new experiences, such as this story about the dog being thrown into traffic. You can almost hear people saying, "How could anyone kill such a cute, innocent dog?" Well, how can someone beat or kill an innocent child? I mean, a child is just as defenseless as a dog. But no one really gives a damn about child abuse, at least not enough to pool together $125,000 to arrest an estranged child killer. The hypocricy, that's what I find so ridiculous about this...

 

Red,

Of course. How many dogs have you heard about that were thrown into traffic? Murders are a common day occurence. People have grown accustomed to someone being murdered each and very few seconds of every day. And, yes, the media sensationalized the dog incident and the dog. The dog has been sensationalized so much it's almost human. And hypocrisy abounds everywhere.

And we slaughtered the crap out of the Indians and took their land. That's just the way it is and probably always will be until the next asteroid or the nuclear holocaust hits. We can pretend that the world is perfect but we all know it's a world full of two opposite kinds of people...good and bad(you know who you are ). We lock the bad away so we never have to see them or their plight again. Then, they come out and reign terror once again. Ah....



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You get mad at a person so you throw their innocent dog into on-coming traffic? Boy those Californians sure are morons .

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THIS JUST IN: The guy was already in jail. I have also read that he has a record of violent behavior.

There is more to this than just an animal. The fact was that this was more about an act of violence against the woman who owned the dog. It was an attempt to terrorize her based solely on emotion. That is why he got the sentence he did. It wasn't simply about the death of her dog.

Personally, I'm glad he got what he did. Do I think it's too much in terms of the general public? Maybe. I do find it extemely hypocritical that we will torture and kill farm animals (if you don't think it's torture, visit a slaughterhouse) with little or no regard for them and give a guy 3 years for killing a dog.

Odd standards.

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Oh, so people should be jailed for stating their opinion now? This isn't Nazi Germany y'know.

Bond shmond. I grew up a great dog and yes, I felt I had that bond. However, I was always aware enough to realize that it was just a dog.

How often do you see people coming forward to offer huge rewards to catch the killer for regular murder cases? I can't think of many.

The only reason people are making such a fuss is because nothing like this has really happened before. "Oh, the poor dog" they think. Never mind the blind eye they turn to little baby Jamal in Harlem who was accidentally shot in his crib. Who is going to offer up the bounty for that killer?

To reiterate: yes, he should be punished, severely. However, 3 years in prison is way too much.

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This doesn't have a thing to do with a dog, really. You see pr**** every day who clearly have no respect or thought for anything around them, human or animal, and people are tired of it. This guy is a prime example (see Jeff's post about his history).

It's about violent behavior more than anything. I agree there should be a more consistent level of punishment for each degree, but really I have no problem with something that shows the morons out there they may have to stop and actually think before they act.

Rok

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"Do you know what nemesis means? 'A righteous infliction of retribution manifested by an appropriate agent'. Personified, in this case, by a horrible c***: ME."
- Brick Top, Snatch

 

How big a difference is there between a
dog and a cow
dog and a chicken
dog and pig
[I was in 4-h some folx have these animals as
pets]

I thinks the thing Kingrene is saying
is cruelty to one animal is considered a
high crime . . but another is well . .just
to bad.

The conditions of Chicken, Pigs, and cows
on some farms is deplorable. . .where
is the outcry for the stopping of these
farmers/ranchers . . hell a few years back
there were ass loads of horses found starving
outside of houston . . .

If you want to punish this guy
what about the horse racing folx?
Dog Racing? [some of the breading grounds . . ]

Rocket River

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My two cents:

I had an English Bulldog a couple of years ago. He was a fantastic dog, and I loved him a lot.

One day, the cable company came in the back yard and neglected to close the gate. He was only out for a few minutes before I realized he had gotten out.

Apparently, he was picked up on Bellaire within a few minutes. We posted signs all over the neighborhood, and I received a call from a guy a couple of days later, and asking what the reward was.

Not really thinking, I told him 50 bucks. He paused, said "yeah, that sounds like a good reward, I'll be over in 20 minutes."

Needless to say, he never came by.

That being said, this guy was a b*stard in my opinion, as well. However, even if he had been caught, and it was realized that he had killed my dog, the sentence of three years, is just ridiculous.

Pay a fine, spend a couple months in jail, and let me sue his ass. That is really the only justifiable punishment.

Again, just my opinion. (Still wish I had my dog, though)

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It's hard for me to think of a 3 year prison sentence for killing a dog is just when Dustin Camp only got probation for purposely killing another human being.

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The dog was a pet for 10 years... to compare his needless murder to killing a pig for food is just stupid.

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I don't see why the search for consistency in the legal system. You aren't going to find it.

Just becuase many murderers and rapists get way, way, too short of sentences does not mean this dude's sentence is not appropriate. I think he will serve 1 year of actual jail time, pending on good behavior. That seems about tight to me.

Now sentencing a dime a dozen small time conern crack dealers to 20 years, but sentencing rapists and other violent criminals to half that, than you have a real inconsistency worth fussing about.

We need to crack down hard on violence, and this guys act was pretty violent and cruel. He deserves 1 year of real time + fines + probation, which it looks like what he is getting.

 

The guy deserves every day he EARNED in jail.

For those of you arguing that it is just a dog, I can honestly say you don't have a pet. A dog (or cat or whatever) becomes like a child. You provide shelter, food, water, and a home for the animal with the intent for the dog to grow old.

The difference between a chicken and a dog? Duh, it's because at some point you intend to eat the chicken.

Also the intent has a major purpose hear. A dog that runs into traffic and gets killed, well obviously there was no intent for the driver to run the dog over. But this ignorant peice oh crap took the dog from the car, and threw it onto the road with traffic on it. If that is not intent I don't know what is.

Well pal good luck and have a great time at Butt Pirate University!

 

I think he's being over-punished, but I'm glad-- simply because I think that any crime committed as an act of road rage should have a "bonus" added to it.

 

Scented chew toys, candles, silk doggie blankets, soft lighting, Barry White music in the background...?

 

I don't know how people can compare the sentence the guy got for killing the dog with the sentence for killing a person when murder sentences aren't even consistent. There are people that kill 3 people and get 15 to 20 years in jail. Then there are people who kill sales clerks and get the death penalty. Nothing is consistent, and I'm glad the guy is rotting in prison.

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"Instruments are like women: After a while, you want to make love to another."

- Nicolas Godin of the musical duo Air

 

Actually murder sentences in Texas are pretty consistent. It depends on the level of the crime the person is convicted of, especially with capital murder in Texas (it's one or the other - Life or Death. There's no other option).

The inconsistency usually comes with non-murder convictions (Manslaughter is one that has a wide variety of sentences, anything from probation to long prison terms).

In the end, though, I just don't support a sentence of three years for animal cruelty. He did a very bad thing, but not anything worthy of prison time. Fines, perhaps a little time in County Jail (no more than three months or so) makes sense to me. Three years is way out of proportion for the crime.

Even the County Probation Department was thinking 1 year in jail followed by probation as an appropriate remedy.

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By the way, I like how the Texas Animal Cruelty statute defines an animal:

s 821.001. Definition
In this subchapter, "animal" includes every living dumb creature.

That's quite a wide definition and could include many of my neighbors and former coworkers.

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