A 25-year-old received an active prison sentence for abusing and killing a dog, the Beersheba District Court ruled on Wednesday.
According to the verdict, on April 27 the accused had agreed to take the complainant's dog out for a walk, which quickly turned violent, when the accused began repeatedly kicking the dog, which eventually led to its death.
During the trial, the complainant's attorney argued that "anyone who harms an animal will eventually harm human beings, and the defendant's actions depict a brutality that's full of hatred towards dogs, human's best friend since the dawn of history."
The accused responded to the allegations by stating that he feels remorse for his actions. He also claimed that he had been going through a difficult mental state at the time and had not taken the pills he was prescribed. His attorney claimed that he had no intention of killing the dog and that the incident was not premeditated.
In the verdict, the Beersheba District Court pointed to several elements that justify the relatively harsh verdict.
First, the accused had violated the value of protecting the weak and innocent. Second, the manner of causing the dog's death was brutal and painful, and was enough to cause the dog irreversible damage, even without planning on eventually killing it. Finally, the accused had a long list of prior allegations that included several instances of animal abuse.
Considering all of the above, the court ruled that the man be sentenced an active prison time of five months, a four-month suspended sentence and a fine of NIS 1,500. An additional NIS 2,000 will be paid by the accused if he is ever involved in such an incident in the future. The man promised to never do anything like this again. The hearing took place via an online video platform, according to court hearing regulations during the coronavirus pandemic.
