A Florida woman was sentenced to more than five years in prison Friday after she was caught on camera abusing her Husky dog.
Elizabeth James admitted hitting the dog with a rubber mallet.she was A hidden camera recorded him punching Kimberly Johns’ husky, Maya.
Prosecutors said James moved into the Tampa home in August 2022 with her boyfriend, her mother and her mother’s dog. According to Fox 13, prosecutors and Johns urged the judge to strongly condemn James for abusing the dog.
“What she did to Maya for 151 days made my dog live in fear,” Johns said at the sentencing hearing. “It’s a creature and she just abused and abused her over and over again.”
Florida woman caught on camera hitting dog with rubber mallet
Elizabeth James was sentenced to more than five years in prison. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said Maya was a healthy dog when James moved in, but shortly thereafter Johns started noticing cuts on the dog’s head and took her to the vet. He said he went there.
About a month later, Maya went to the veterinarian for a bent toenail. A month later, the dog needed six staples in his head. A few days later, Maya was having trouble walking, so she went back to the vet.
Suspecting some kind of abuse, a veterinarian recommended that Johns set up a camera to film what was happening to Maya.
“Besides the abuse that began in August 2020, the defendant struck Ms. Maya 38 times with a mallet and punched her an additional 26 times,” prosecutor Karrie Becker told the judge.
Elizabeth James is He was recorded on a hidden camera punching a husky named Maya. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office Facebook)
The veterinarian who treated Maya said the husky suffered rib fractures and spinal cord injuries, and it appears some of the bones had broken or broken again after healing, indicating that the animal had been abused before it was caught on camera. suggested that it was likely.
Maya is currently okay, but has been taken to the veterinarian for continued treatment due to her extensive injuries.
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“I think it’s a miracle that Maya is alive,” Dr. Jerica Brooks, lead shelter veterinarian at the Pet Resource Center, said at the hearing.
James appealed for leniency, claiming that he had been abused in the past and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. He also said he did not remember mistreating Maya, which was caught on camera.
Maya is currently okay, but has been taken to the veterinarian for continued treatment due to her extensive injuries. (Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)
“I don’t remember what I did that day. I’ve never done anything like that, so I’m going to therapy. I’ve never laid a hand on anyone, but that doesn’t excuse it.” I just wanted to apologize,” James said.
Prosecutors and the Johns believe James had no remorse for hitting Maya.
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“One of us won’t get away with interacting with humans, and she shouldn’t get away with interacting with animals,” Johns said.
“I’ve been a prosecutor for almost 20 years, and I’ve personally never experienced a case this bad,” Hillsboro State Attorney Susie Lopez said. “The crime was horrific. It was shocking. And of course the fact that it was captured on video made it even worse. So the judge asked what Miss James had done to Maya. We understand that animal cruelty will not be tolerated in Hillsborough County.
