Man Kills Cat & Other Pets In Vicious Manner: Jailed for 46 Weeks
Summary:
Paragraph 20 reads: "The defendant, who took medication for anxiety and depression, was deeply ashamed of what he had done, which was horrendous. It had made him feel physically sick."
SSRI Stories Note: The Physicians Desk Reference states that antidepressants can cause a craving for alcohol and can cause alcohol abuse. Also, the liver cannot metabolize the antidepressant and the alcohol simultaneously, thus leading to higher levels of both alcohol and the antidepressant in the human body.
A ‘VIOLENT and cruel drunk’ is being investigated for kicking a rabbit to death the day before he was sent to prison for killing a cat.
Jason Metcalfe was jailed for 46 weeks yesterday after he admitted repeatedly smashing the cat against a brick wall.
He grabbed 14-year-old Bonnie by her back legs and swung her against the wall at least four times over 10 minutes, just because she was said to have rubbed against him, Burnley Crown Court was told.
After he was sentenced, police said an investigation was under way into reports that a man had attacked a rabbit on Thursday night. Officers said the animal suffered a seizure and died.
The rabbit belonged to Kim Gouldsbrough, 26, and has left her three children Tamsine, nine, Cordelia, four and Joshua, two, distraught.
Ms Gouldsbrough, who runs a rabbit rescue sanctuary at her home in Green End Avenue, Earby, said the animal, a two-and-a-half-year-old British Giant rabbit called Edward, had escaped from her garden and wandered into nearby Goodall Close.
Kim said two girls claimed to have seen a man kicking the rabbit in the head at around 11.30pm on Thursday.
She said: “He wasn’t like a typical pet rabbit. He didn’t live in a cage, we let him wander down the street and kids would dress him up and push him around in a pram.
“Edward was a pet for the whole community. It’s so sad.” “Tamsine is absolutely heartbroken and has had to have the morning off school.
Police will now consult with the RSPCA before deciding what action to take.
Metcalfe had arrived at court to be sentenced with his face plastered up, and it was revealed he had been attacked by a dog which had bitten off part of his nose.
The defendant, of Kenilworth Drive, Earby, had earlier admitted failing to meet the needs of the cat by not protecting her from the pain she suffered.
He was also in breach of a suspended sentence for a sustained attack on a friend.
Metcalfe, who was banned from owning or keeping animals for life, had been committed for sentence by Reedley Magistrates.
Raquel Simpson, prosecuting for the RSPCA, told the hearing last September 28, police were called to a disturbance in Goodall Close, Earby, where the defendant then lived.
He was drunk, there was blood on his clothing and a nine-year-old girl told officers the defendant had killed a cat.
Miss Simpson said Metcalfe was arrested and taken to the police station. He was interviewed the next day and said he had been to the Burnley alcohol team during the day, had been drinking Special Brew, had no recollection of killing the cat and could not explain the blood stains on his clothing.
A vet found the cat had suffered various fractures to her skull and died from cranial trauma.
Mark Stuart, for Metcalfe, who has suffered head injuries in the past, said a medical report had been obtained and it concluded he was not suffering from any sort of psychiatric illness.
The defendant, who took medication for anxiety and depression, was deeply ashamed of what he had done, which was horrendous. It had made him feel physically sick.
Sentencing, Recorder Michael Murray said: "Such conduct is abhorrent to any right thinking member of society. It is vile and barbaric behaviour, which, understandably, would make reasonable people feel outraged."
The judge activated 30 weeks of the suspended term and added 16 weeks, the maximum he could impose with "credit" for a guilty plea, for killing Bonnie.
The cat's devastated owner, Sarah Lancaster, 21, and her family, were in court to see Metcalfe sent to custody. Miss Lancaster, who has Bonnie's name tattooed on her right shoulder, had earlier told of her anger and disgust at the defendant's behaviour.
She said: "Bonnie was the loveliest little thing. She was very loving and friendly."
RSPCA inspector Dave Holgate said: "This was a dreadful case involving extreme violence against a cat with a very friendly nature that happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"Whilst I appreciate that Metcalfe has some problems there can be absolutely no excusing what happened here.”