Hamster's cruel death leads to teenager's arrest (Could get two years)

[Skip Intro]

Hope she does...

http://www.examiner.com/pet-rescue-in-national/hamster-s-cruel-death-leads-to-teenager-s-arrest

A New York City teenager was arrested Wednesday night for the alleged death of her younger brother's pet hamster. In what turns out to be a story of alleged spitefulness and revenge, Monique Smith, 19, may now be facing up to two years in prison and a $5000 fine for one count of felony animal cruelty, one count of misdemeanor cruelty, and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

In June, Monique Smith came home to her mother's Bushwick apartment to find her pet hamster Princess Stephania dead. Monique's brother, Aaron was blamed for the hamster's death when Aaron apparently kicked the exercise ball Princess Stephania had been playing. Monique was so angry, she threw Aaron's pet hamster, Sweetie" to the ground, and according to court records, Monique "attempted to pull the hamster's whiskers out and then crushed the hamster with her hand." And then in front of her three younger siblings, Monique threw the dying animal out into the street. The necropsy from Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital showed that "Sweetie" died of blunt force trauma and liver damage.

Aaron was so distraught he called the ASPCA's Humane Law Enforcement Unit. Assistant Director Joe Petangelo has been looking for Monique for months, and finally found her on Tuesday night. On Wednesday night, Monique was in jail in lieu of $1000 bail.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Hamster's cruel death leads to teenager's arrest - National Pet Rescue | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/pet-rescue-in-national/hamster-s-cruel-death-leads-to-teenager-s-arrest#ixzz1GGUiU5nU

[Maru Kitteh]

1. GOOD.

[Sonoman]

2. "three counts of endangering the welfare of a child."

You cannot make this shit up.

Sonoman

[petronius]

14. I've got to assume that there's something else going on here, and the story is

just a bit poorly written. Because that math just doesn't add up... :shrug:

[NoTimeToulouse]

3. Two years for a killing a hampster yet Dubya couldn't be impeached for

the deaths of thousands of Us Servicemen/women and many more Iraqi citizens?

The world is truly F-ed up.

[The Traveler]

4. I do not take animal cruelty lightly

Two years for this is about right.

Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld ... I think it likely they are guilty of crimes against humanity and quite possibly treason to the people of the United States. They should be tried, but that won't happen because they would then be convicted. And in that case, for each, a blindfold, a cigarette, and 12 cheap bullets. You would see justice served ... but it will never happen.

I have been told my feelings on this matter are extreme, but to paraphrase Goldwater "Extremism in the defense of liberty and justice is no vice."

Trav

[NoTimeToulouse]

17. I would have to disagree. 2 years in jail would be better commuted

into 5 years of community service. The jails are overcrowded to begin with, and why give another person up to the incarceration business?

I agree that killing a defenseless creature is detestable, but there should be better ways of handling this.

The girl sounds like an idiot, an the world is full of them, but what would 2 years of prison make?

[Hannah Bell]

12. +100. sorry, two years for hamster murder is ridiculous.

[anneboleyn]

5. It's well-established that people who abuse animals

often turn violent against people (very well established in the history of serial killers, for example). It's always a sign of sickness to me that anyone would torture something helpless, especially a sibling's pet. Of course the brother also abused the other hamster, so the situation there sounds poor.

[csziggy]

6. What about the death of the hamster that was in the exercise ball?

Apparently Aaron kicked the ball and that cause the death of "Princess Stephania" the teenage girl's hamster. So not just one hamster was killed by a young person in this case, two fo the family's pet hamsters were.

It sounds like this family has some serious problems.

[DeSwiss]

8. That's what I wondered.....

...as well. Is the SPCA looking the other way on the killing of Princess Stephania?

:shrug:

[Aerows]

9. Well...

...the Princess Stephania may have been an accident. You'd be surprised the places a hamster can get to in one of those things when you least expect it. You have to be careful when you put them in one of those and pay attention to where they are going.

It's very sad, but that's a lot different than throwing the hamster to the ground, pulling out it's whiskers, smashing it, and throwing it in the street to die.

If it was done on purpose, well, there are a LOT of problems in that household.

[csziggy]

18. There is that - I should have remembered this article

SPEEDING HAMSTER OVERTAKES RUSH-HOUR TRAFFIC
Saturday September 13,2008
By Paul Broster for express.co.uk

ASTONISHED drivers crawling through rush-hour traffic watched themselves being overtaken ... by a hamster in its playball.

Treacle’s tiny legs were a blur as her plastic globe travelled faster and faster.

Afraid that the little rodent would run herself to death, Nick Smith leapt from his car and snatched her from the gutter.

Read more: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/61299Speeding-hamster-overtakes-rush-hour-traffic-#ixzz1GJdtE9MZ

Yes, those hamsters can get places you'd never expect!

[msongs]

7. but it's ok to kill kids gathering firewood. not a fair world is it? nt

[johnroshan]

10. Am I missing something here? n/t.

[GSLevel9]

11. Afghanistan war reference...

comparing the media's ignorance of Obama's wars and the bloodshed that goes along with them.

[Kalun D]

13. 9 Afghan Children

were gathering firewood. No adults, no weapons.

all killed by a helicopter gunship.

[johnroshan]

15. aah... thanks.

We apologized for that... What more do those Muslims want anyway?

This does bring up a sad picture of our times. Scratch that.. its how it has always been.

If you are powerful and rich, rule of law doesn't apply.

If you are poor, tough luck.

[Warren DeMontague]

16. I'll probably get flamed, but I don't think 2 years in prison is an effective use of our tax $, here

I think maybe counseling, probation, and a whole ton of mandated service hours at an animal rescue shelter would make more sense. :shrug:

[jp11]

19. Agreed, lack of self control to let what 'rage' blind you to doing something that

cruel to a small animal says to me the girl needs help, that or she is just that 'cold' to casually make that kind of decision. Tossing her in jail to truly face incarceration's darkest aspects isn't the 'best' way to rehabilitate/help her, it would just be an extreme punishment.

She should get help and be punished, not just punished to the point of 'pushing/guiding' her to more cruel aspects of life either for her to inflict on others or to have done to her.

[conspirator]

20. Serial killers start as animal killers. So it may save the Police Department some

money in detective salary.

[Warren DeMontague]

21. Maybe. But our prisons are full of people who shouldn't be there. Many folks "might" commit crimes

usually, however, we wait until they actually do it before we punish them for it.

Now, I accept that there may be a disturbing lack of empathy, which is why I suggested counseling and public service~ but I think 2 years in prison is a gross waste of resources and an over-reach for the concept of "prison", which should be reserved for dangerous people with a history of violence against humans.

[Warren DeMontague]

22. In another thread, someone is saying how great it would be if 5 Billion people would die.

I think that's at least as much an indicator of creepy sociopathic tendencies as animal abuse is.