Woman says she killed cats because grandchildren wouldn’t clean rooms, arrested

[Liberal_in_LA]

http://fox2now.com/2015/05/19/josephine-bell-says-she-killed-cats-because-grandkids-wouldnt-clean-rooms/
A kitten-killing grandmother is behind bars in Madison County. Investigators say the Godfrey woman killed her granddaughter’s cat and four kittens with a hammer, to teach her grand kids a lesson. The animal abuse was discovered at the family’s home on the 5000-block of West Victor Drive.

On Monday evening, the 13 year-old granddaughter opened the freezer, looking for a snack, and made a nauseating discovery. There was her beloved cat, dead inside the freezer. The girl texted a relative, who called police.

Madison County investigators arrived, and asked the girl what happened. Her grandma immediately piped in. Seventy-one year-old Josephine Bell said she killed the cat, and its four kittens, all because the kids wouldn’t clean their rooms.

The 71 year-old is now charged with Aggravated Animal Cruelty, and could face 1 to 3 years in prison.
Captain Mike Dixon with the Madison County Sheriff’s Department says, “Without a substantial criminal history, she likely could be looking at probation and fines for this case. But hopefully it brings about a change in demeanor, and this kind of behavior doesn’t happen again for the benefit of these children, is what ultimately I think most of us would hope for.”

[jonno99]

1. My guess is that G'ma was at her wits end.

Sad all around...

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

26. She was long past her wit's end.

And she needs never to see those grandkids again. Her next 'lesson' could be a hammer to the kids' skulls.

[Tom Ripley]

2. I'm hoping this monster dies in prison

[Codeine]

8. For killing cats?

We have entire industries based around killing animals. She's a piece of shit, but rotting in prison seems overboard.

[Tom Ripley]

16. That and the psychological terror inflicted on the kids

Fuck her

[kcr]

17. Seriously? You really don't think that's severely cruel to the children at least?

That's some serious psychological damage worthy of a long prison term.

[Terra Alta]

3. there are much better ways to teach your grandkids to clean their rooms.

I hope this woman gets the stiffest punishment possible, and that her grandkids are never allowed in her care again.

[Dem2]

4. That's horrible.

Makes me very angry - she's a vile person.

[Liberal_in_LA]

5. her granddaughter will never forget seeing her beloved cat in the fridge

[Dem2]

7. Never

How often do adults talk lovingly about their animals when describing their childhood?

I'm so infuriated that an adult could do such a vile thing. If a child did it we'd be projecting that they may murder a human in the future.

[geek tragedy]

6. Get a restraining order against the monster.

Let her never see those kids again.

Also, throw her ass in jail.

[closeupready]

35. +100.

[hifiguy]

36. Yep.

Sick, sick, sick. That poor girl finding her cat in the refrigerator.

[NuclearDem]

9. What. The. Fuck.

[darkangel218]

10. Many hate cats. They have no problem with even killing them.

Remember the TX vet posing with the cat ( which many said wasn't even dead yet in the pic ) ?
There are callous people out there. No feelings for animals, or maybe for cats in particular.

They make me sick.

[Arugula Latte]

18. How people view/treat cats speaks volumes.

Have you ever noticed that cat haters tend to be assholish control freaks trying to cover their own insecurities? I can see right through them. And cat-loving men are smarter, kinder, funnier, and more secure than other men, in general, in my experience.

[darkangel218]

20. Absolutely.

In my personal life, I stay far far away from cat haters. Just like you said, they are complete assholes in many other aspects of life.

[hifiguy]

37. True. Cat haters don't put much value on independence

or independent thought. n.b. I mean cat haters, not people who happen to prefer dogs to cats.

[Donald Ian Rankin]

40. No, I've noticed rather the reverse.

There are two kinds of cat (and dog) owners - the responsible ones, who understand that not everyone likes their pet, who generally try to avoid it causing other people problems, and the assholes who view not liking cats/dogs as a character flaw, who generally don't.

[Arugula Latte]

41. I'm not talking about people who are just not really into pets ...

I'm talking about people, mostly men, who go out of their way to disparage cats, in particular (this doesn't seem to happen very much with dogs), stress how much they despise them, and even in some cases talk about doing them harm. It's like they are personally offended that cats exist because it infuriates them that there are beings that they can't control and that don't kowtow to them. These people invariably have some combination of control freakishness + insecurities they try to cover up + anger issues.

I have cats but they are indoor kitties and I wouldn't force them on anybody even if I could. Lol.

[TDale313]

11. 1 to 3 years is not nearly enough.

Cruelty to animals/animal abuse like this should be condsidered a serious and violent felony. Anyone who could do this is a danger to society, and would very likely be violent with people as well. It's disgusting that something like this gets a slap on the wrist while nonviolent crimes often get much harsher sentences.

[darkangel218]

12. +1

It should be automatic felony.
But it's not. Because the bible thumpers who make the laws think animals were "put on Earth to only serve us".

Fucking sick.

[hifiguy]

38. Couldn't agree more.

There is no reason animal cruelty should not be a felony.

[CharlotteVale]

14. +1

[yardwork]

24. Yes, it is classic sign of domestic abuse.

Unless this woman has some kind of dementia or other medical problem that is causing her to do bizarre things, she's an abuser. My guess is that she has abused her grandchildren in other ways. Killing pets is a classic sign of escalating abuse. It's a way of controlling victims through terror.

[giftedgirl77]

13. That's fuckin psychotic

I have 4 dogs (1 german shepherd, 2 rotties, 1 rottie/shepherd mix) & 4 cats plus 2 teenage boys. The damn German Shepherd is my soon to be ex husband's but he won't/can't take him because the dog would be devastated if he left me but he drives me insane & the rottie mix is an evil monster but my 13yr old loves her to death.

They are both 8 1/2 yrs old we've had them since they were babies, even put them in foster care when we deployed. As much as they all drive me batshit insane I look at all 8 of them like my children & couldn't do anything to harm them.

[hollysmom]

19. I am wondering if this woman has all her marbles

it seems a strange punishment for children, - throwing out the stuff on the floor seems more to the point. You kill and put it in the freezer? maybe throw it in the garbage, but the freezer? was she going to make the kids eat it? Just very strange, I think someone should examine this woman before having her rot in jail.

[yardwork]

25. I thought about that, but the more likely explanation

...is that she is a violent abuser. Killing pets is a way to control her victims. I would not be surprised if she has a long history of abusing her children and grandchildren. She would call it discipline but it's abuse and she might have been working up to killing somebody.

[hollysmom]

34. still doesn't hurt to have her tested.

but then again, I read further stories and animal control was at that house the week before and took their dog away. the family would not let them have the cats though.

It seems the well-being of the family pets was in question even before this cat-killing.

Last week, investigators say Animal Control took a dog from the home, and offered to take the other animals as well, but the family refused.

http://kfor.com/2015/05/20/woman-says-she-killed-cats-because-grandchildren-wouldnt-clean-rooms/

[countryjake]

30. It's like yardwork says, this is typical of a domestic abuser.

An abuser would want those dead pets seen by her victims. It's all wrapped up in the mental cruelty that goes hand in hand with much domestic violence. Whether she has an undiagnosed illness or not, the children are at risk and have already suffered at her hands.

As soon as I read that the girl found her kitty in the freezer, I thought that this couldn't just be some frustrated gramma. The woman might have regretted her dirty deed immediately after and thought that the kids might want to have a burial or something, so that's why she saved the cat. I sincerely doubt it.

[avebury]

21. The parents would be foolish to ever leave their

kids alone with Grandma again. In my house, Grandma would be persona non grata. If she did that to the cat and her kittens I would be concerned about what she might do the kids.

[EL34x4]

31. I'm guessing the parents aren't around or otherwise incapable...

...of caring for their kids who were then pawned off on grandma. Notice the girl texted a "relative", not mom or dad.

Kids are probably now headed for foster care.

[avebury]

33. Hopefully other relatives will step

in and help these children. They certainly don't need to be around this Grandmother.

[surrealAmerican]

22. Even if she doesn't get prison time ...

... she needs to be kept far away from those grandchildren, and any other children.

[leftyladyfrommo]

23. and animals.

She sounds really mentally ill.

[peace13]

27. She will go to prison for killing cats....

...while The war criminals and the people who helped them, walk free. Where was the outrage for that. This woman is probably at her wits end with those kids. She needs help and what she gets is jail!

[City Lights]

28. People like her give humans a bad name.

Unfortunately, there are lots of humans like her out there.

[Sunlei]

29. sounds like it may not be safe to have 71 yr.Grandmom in charge of the household.

I don't like the way fox exposed their entire home address to the world.

[bullwinkle428]

32. Utterly despicable act, not only upon the kitties but upon her own grandchildren.

[Avalux]

39. Killing the cats is horrific, but there's something deeper going on here.

Think about it - the kids wouldn't clean their rooms, Grandma killed their beloved cats. I hate to know how she treats the kids on a regular basis, and what they're learning from her by example. Good for the 13 year old for turning her in.