OFFICE OF CITY PROSECUTOR SECURES JAIL TIME FOR DEFENDANTS WITH REPEATED ANIMAL VIOLATIONS

The Office of City Prosecutor today announced the recent
win to secure jail time for repeat offenders for animal violations. The
case comes after the city charged two residents with repeat offenses
dating back to 2006.

"Targeting repeat offenders has been a focus of the Office of City
Prosecutor," explained Samantha Karn, Corporation Counsel for the City
of Indianapolis. "Aggressively targeting these individuals reinforces
Mayor Ballard's commitment to a cleaner, safer city."

Since 2006, Timothy and Telisa Pierce, of the 3400 block of West Murray,
have repeatedly been ordered to keep their dogs confined to their
property.

On three separate occasions, the court found that Timothy Pierce failed
to keep his dog from roaming unaccompanied through his neighborhood,
resulting in the Court ordering him on October 26, 2009, to never own or
keep a dog in Marion County again. Additionally, on three separate
occasions, the court found that Telisa Pierce, who resides in the same
house as Timothy, failed to keep her dog from roaming unaccompanied
through her neighborhood, and the Court ordered her on November 6, 2009
to never own or keep a dog in Marion County again.

On November 8, 2009, Animal Care and Control (ACC) was dispatched to
investigate an animal attack in the 3400 block of West Murray. When the
officer arrived at the location, she was directed to the Pierce home as
the location where the attacking dog was confined. The defendants were
unavailable at that time, and an officer returned to the home three days
later. At that time, the officer found six dogs confined in the Pierce's
garage, with no food or water.

At that time, the Office of City Prosecutor filed a motion with the
Court against the Pierce's for contempt of court. On December 16, 2009
the Court ordered both defendants to serve five days in jail and ordered
each individual a $1,000 fine for violating a total of six Court orders
against them.

The Office of City Prosecutor is a division of the Office of Corporation
Counsel. In 2008, the City Prosecutor eliminated a backlog of more than
800 cases from 2007. Today, the City Prosecutor promptly prosecutes
violations referred to it from ACC and the Office of Code Enforcement.