Man Who Tossed Dog Out of High-Rise Is Sentenced

[Guest MrRant]

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for robbery, burglary and throwing his ex-girlfriend's dog out a 23rd floor window.

 

John Jefferson, 43, pleaded guilty this month to aggravated cruelty to animals, robbery, burglary, criminal contempt and stalking his former girlfriend, whose dog, a terrier-poodle mix named Ribsy, he killed in a rage on May 26.

 

Ribsy's owner, Eugenia Miller, tearfully defended Jefferson in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, saying he loved her dog but had been "very, very high" on crack after a two-day binge.

 

"Ribsy is safe. I can't look at it any other way than that. He's in a place that I hope to be in one day," she told Judge James Yates.

 

During his rampage in Miller's apartment in downtown Manhattan, Jefferson threw her television, air conditioner, stereo and clothing off the balcony before tossing the dog to his death.

 

Two years of Jefferson's 12-year sentence were for killing the dog, the judge said, with the rest for robbery, burglary, stalking and contempt of court.

 

Had Jefferson been convicted at trial, he faced up to 25 years in prison on all charges.

 

I really wish people would get more time for killing a dog like that. I would say 5-10 just for that alone.

[Guest EricMM]

I agree, since there's no reason to do that to a dog, and if you do, I believe it is indicitive of the kind of mind that would do bad stuff to another person, thus it would be best to lock that person up?

[Guest Slapnuts00]

It's just as bad as throwing a defenseless baby to it's death. Fucker would get the chair if I was in charge...

[Guest The Metal Maniac]

Sorry if this makes me sound cold, but...it's a DOG, not a baby. Dogs =/= people.

 

I agree that it is probably indicitive of a person's tendencies towards people (I mean, if you're gonna kill animals, I'll bet you ain't very nice to people) but there's a line here.

 

Dogs are not people, and I think that to claim that taking the life of a dog is equal to taking the life of a human child is kinda silly.

[Guest HartFan86]

Why doesn't he get charged with first degree murder?

[Guest Samurai_Goat]

Hey, man, I think killing a dog is much worse than killing a person. I mean, there are at least a few reasons to pull out to kill a person, but what has the dog done to you? But, let's just do to the guy what he did to the dog: Throw him from a significant height from a window. However, we'd have to scale it up, since people are so much larger, so the damage would be comparable. I'm thinking somewhere around...orbit height should do it. Send the canine killing poo-head into the stratosphere!

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

Why doesn't he get charged with first degree murder?

Because he didn't kill anyone.

 

The life of a dog doesn't matter as much as a person.

 

To me, the most disturbing thing about this case is this:

 

Ribsy's owner, Eugenia Miller, tearfully defended Jefferson in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, saying he loved her dog but had been "very, very high" on crack after a two-day binge.

[Guest DrTom]

Why doesn't he get charged with first degree murder?

Because he killed a fucking DOG, not a person. I know dogs have shrinks and all that now -- because why not share unneeded societal largesse with your pet? -- but they're still dogs. He should certainly do jail time for what he did, but let's not lose sight of the fact that he killed a dog, not a human being.

[Guest kkktookmybabyaway]

"Sorry if this makes me sound cold, but...it's a DOG, not a baby. Dogs =/= people."

 

Animals are not equal to people, imo, but since I gave up on the human race a LONG time ago, I say off with his head!

 

"Ribsy's owner, Eugenia Miller, tearfully defended Jefferson in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, saying he loved her dog but had been "very, very high" on crack after a two-day binge."

 

Sure he was a crackhead, but he was MY ex-crackhead. All Risby did was show me love his entire life...

[Guest HecateRose]

Most people know that dogs are not on the same "level" as people, but that does not keep them from loving their pet, worrying about them, and mourning their loss. I agree, it's not like the guy could be charged with first degree murder or anything, but it should go beyond cruelty to animals. I have a dog, and I know she is not the same as a child, but I would be devastated if someone did something like that to her, and I would want to see them punished for more than just animal cruelty and the like. They are not just someone property. A dog is a living thing too, and it should count as such.

[Guest HartFan86]

Why doesn't he get charged with first degree murder?

Because he killed a fucking DOG, not a person. I know dogs have shrinks and all that now -- because why not share unneeded societal largesse with your pet? -- but they're still dogs. He should certainly do jail time for what he did, but let's not lose sight of the fact that he killed a dog, not a human being.

Yeah, I know....but still. It's a life.

 

Kinda puts in prespective that what should the penalty be if you step on a bug or something.

[Guest HartFan86]

Another thing you have to put in consideration is a dog only has one method of self-defense: Bite you and run away. Humans can do 1,000 of different things to get away.

 

Weird thought just popped in my head. What would you do if say, a gorilla, took you and threw you off the 23rd floor baloncy. Charge it with first degree murder?

[Guest HecateRose]

I would be wondering how said gorilla got to a 23rd story apartment in the middle of a city in the first place.

 

You can't charge it with first degree murder because there is no way we would find a gorilla competent enough to stand trial for it's misdeeds. Odds are the animal would be put down for the violent outburst.

 

Now that's something to make you think. A dog bites someone whether is self defense, defense of its home or family, or whatever, the dog gets put down. Even though the bite may not have been anywhere close to being considered a life threatening attack, it still can be ordered to be put down. Yet, a person can beat the living daylights out of someone, go to jail for a while, get out on good behavior, just to beat the crap out of someone again.

[Guest HartFan86]

Let's just say the gorilla was brought up to your room because you were drunk and you planned on throwing it over the balcony. The guy at the front desk is distracted by your friend.

 

The gorilla gets pissed and throws you off.

 

What? I'm not crazy.

[Guest bob_barron]

If someone killed one of my dogs intentionally- that fucker would DIE

[Guest So what? I liked bubble boy]

I have a wonderful dog, If someone were to accidently kill him (by a car), then I would be sad, forgive the guy and move on. A man whose intentions is to chuck a dog out of the 23 floor story building should get time. Not for just killing the dog, but for possible damage to a person walking down the street. It's funny, I have a discussion with one of my friends about this guy who was mad at this old lady for driving slow, guy pulls out in front of her, stops the car, goes up to her, the window (of course) is down, the guy takes her small dog and chucks it out of the window onto the freeway, the guy get 6 months. This topic just reminded me of that.

[Guest Slapnuts00]

I would be wondering how said gorilla got to a 23rd story apartment in the middle of a city in the first place.

Well, someone hasn't seen King Kong...

[Guest The Metal Maniac]

There are cases of animals (Not dogs) killing humans and being killed for it.

 

I remember reading about one elephant that killed it's trainer (I think) and killed/injured a few others. They hung it from a crane, using heavy chain. Disturbing image, no?

[Guest HecateRose]

Wasn't there a case about 2 pit bulls killing a lady, or am I wrong there?

[Guest Samurai_Goat]

Well, there's more than one case about pit bulls killing people. You'll have to get more specific.

[Guest HecateRose]

Just trying to say that I believe there have been cases where dogs were put down for killing someone.

[Guest Samurai_Goat]

Psh, there have been times when dogs have been put down for being noisy.

[Guest The Metal Maniac]

Hecate: So what if dogs were put down for killing people?

 

A) We've been known to kill PEOPLE who've killed people.

 

B) It's already been said that a person's life is worth more then a dogs. If a person kills a dog, well, it's a DOG. If a dog killed a person, then it was a PERSON. There's a difference.

[Guest HecateRose]

The difference is that if a dog kills someone, why they did it does not matter. A person can kill a person in self defense, and that's fine. In some states, a person can kill a person for breaking into their homes, and they aren't punished. If a dog attacks a person for any reason, the owners can be ordered to put the dog down, whether it was self defense, defense of the home, defense of the people residing in said home. That is the problem I see. It's BS that someone can jump into a yard with a dog in it (with the intent of robbing the place), get bitten, and then the dog gets put down. That's just my opinion on the matter.

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

What if that dog bites your kid's face? Whack it with a newspaper?

 

It doesn't matter why a dog mauls a person, it's a dangerous animal. They can't be reasoned and communicated with like that, so you tie ol' Scratch to a tree and pull the trigger, problem solved.

 

Yeah, I know....but still. It's a life.

 

Kinda puts in prespective that what should the penalty be if you step on a bug or something.

 

How about 20-life. That cockroach was just minding its own business, picking at that errant french fry next to the trash can, and you have the sheer vile callousness to take its life? For shame. I bet that bug hadn't even had the chance to acclamate itself to our culture. Not only should you hang for an offense like that, but should be put in the stocks for the sheer bacterial genocide you unleash with every bubble bath.

[Guest CED Ordonez]

Random thought for today: If we're allowed to put it down and we don't consider it to be human, why can't we eat it? For the record, I'm just flippin' hungry and it's 4 in the morning.

 

I'm pretty content with a 12 year sentence.

 

Robbery: Not Good. Burglary: Not good. Stalking your ex: Not good. Tossing your ex's possessions out of a window: Definitely not good. Your ex calling you a crackhead, and that's her defense for you: Priceless.

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

..."Sewer rat might taste like pumpkin pie, but I'd never know because I wouldn't eat the filthy motherfuckers."...

 

"I don't eat dog either"

 

"But do you consider a dog a filthy animal?"

 

"I wouldn't go so far as to call a dog filthy, but they're definitely dirty. 'Sides, a dog's got personality; personality goes a long way."

 

"So by that logic, if a pig had personality, it would cease to be a filthy animal..."

 

"Yeah, but we'd be talking about one charmin' motherfuckin' pig, ten times more charming than that Arnold on Green Acres.."

[Guest Samurai_Goat]

A dog bites a kid in the face, causes facial scarring, and is put down. But what if a kid bites a dog in the face? Lets say some sadistic kid just walks up to a puppy, and chews on the dog. Would we put the kid down? Remember, in this situation the kid did this for pleasure, not self defence. What should we do to this kid?

[Guest The Metal Maniac]

Well, you don't have the damn kid killed, that's for sure. Of course there'd have to be some sort of punishment (Of course, if the kid was real young, there probably wouldn't be any - damn young offenders) but the punishment would NOT involve death, because it's a DOG. Probably some kinda psychiciatric evaluations or something...whatever works.

 

You wouldn't have someone put down if they walked up and bit another person's face anyway. Just punished, but not killed.

[Guest Samurai_Goat]

So we wouldn't put down, or possible even punish, a kid going around torturing animals for shits and giggles, but a dog trying to protect its family is killed. I don't see how that's right. I'm not saying the kid should be killed, but the dog shouldn't either. Especially if the kid was havin' a nice ol' fun time, and the dog was just trying to help. I will say that if dogs break out of the yard, track down a kid, and then maim the poo out of the kid, the dog should be put down simply because they wouldn't understand any punishment anyway. But I feel that way towards a lot of humans, too. And I may be rambling today, I apologize. Insomnia is the antithesis of rule.