LACEY – Several local animal rights groups have formed a coalition and are calling for justice in the case of three dogs who died last year as the result of being left abandoned in a township house.
The New Jersey Animal Advocacy Coalition (NJAAC) is made up of animal welfare organizations and advocates in the State of New Jersey. Members of the Lacey Raccoon Task Force are founding members of this new Coalition, which includes NJASM (NJ Animal Save Movement), NJ HSUS (Humane Society of the U.S.), APL (Animal Protection League), the NJ League of Humane Voters, FAUN NJ (Friends of Animals United), and Jersey Shore Wildlife Rescue.
“We work extensively in the state with respect to all aspects of animal welfare, including legislative initiatives, educational programs and outreach, sanctuary support, abuse investigative action, and rescue,” said Lisa S. Tarzia, the organization’s administrator.
A number of animal abuse cases gained attention last fall in Ocean County. The anniversary of horrific death of a racoon by Lacey teenagers was noted in December with a rally in front of the offices of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.
Another Lacey case of abuse which the coalition is focusing on involves seeking justice for three dogs, Kobe, Gizmo, and Fred, who were left in a Lacey home where they died of dehydration and starvation.
The woman accused of their abandonment is Lacey resident Alissa DeStefano. She was charged with three individual criminal felony counts in the third degree for the alleged abuse, neglect, abandonment and death of the three dogs. Her case is pending before Ocean County Superior Court, Toms River.
In November 2019, the Lacey Township Police Department responded to resident complaints and concerns about the welfare of DeStefano’s dogs. Officers investigated the abandoned household to ascertain the condition of the dogs, which were found dead in a room within the household.
The NJAAC recently wrote to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer and Linda Baxter, presiding judge in this case, and Dr. Nedim C. Buyukmihci, V.M.D., Emeritus Professor of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis expressing that “animal cruelty in New Jersey must be taken seriously, and that heinous acts such as these must not only be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, but must include psychiatric assessment and potential treatment, as well as the prohibition of future pet ownership by the defendant.”
NJAAC members noted that on Aug. 22, 2019, the Lacey Township Animal Control Officer, employed by Academy Pest Control, investigated a resident’s complaint that DeStefano’s dogs were possibly victims of abuse and neglect. On August 29, 2019, the Lacey Township Police Department also responded to a resident complaint of similar allegations.
“On both occasions, DeStefano had the opportunity to relinquish the care the three dogs to authorities, if she was unable or unwilling to continue the shelter and care of the pets in her charge. Instead, she chose to abandon her dogs and her home, knowing that they would suffer and die without water or food,” the NJAAC letter states.
During her recent court appearance, DeStefano’s attorney stated that she would apply for Pre-trial Intervention, but her request has been denied, as of March 20. DeStefano’s next court appearance is on May 20, and she is enrolled in the Early Disposition Conference.
The coalition has requested all the facts of the case be taken into consideration with the court’s decision and any penalty imposed.
The organization maintains that the defendant had at least two opportunities to relinquish ownership of her three dogs to investigating authorities and many occasions to transfer care of the animals to concerned neighbors and residents who repeatedly inquired about their welfare.
The group stated in their correspondence that the defendant’s actions warrant sentencing to the fullest extent allowable by law in addition to court mandated psychiatric evaluation and therapy.
“Ms. DeStefano should also be prohibited from obtaining pets in the future,” the letter states.
Dr. Buyukmihci has detailed the behavior of starving, trapped animals, that would resort to viciously attacking one another in an effort to survive. He noted such cannibalistic behavior would result in extremely painful wounds, in addition to the horrific suffering of dehydration and starvation as the animals eventually succumbed to organ failure, shock and death.
The NJAAC is seeking to read their letter from Dr. Buyukmihci, on the day of DeStefano’s next court appearance on May 20, or her subsequent sentencing hearing, to represent the interests of Kobe, Gizmo, and Fred, “who suffered needlessly and extensively at the hands of the defendant. The three innocent victims in this case deserve a voice in the courtroom,” Lisa S. Tarzia, the organization’s administrator said.
“Leniency in this felony criminal animal abuse case is not warranted and would send the message that Lacey Township, Ocean County, and the State of New Jersey, tolerates willful, inhumane animal abuse,” Tarzia added.
