Woman fined $20,000 for animal cruelty after dumping neighbour’s dogs
KINGSTON, Jamaica — A 60-year-old woman was sentenced to pay a fine of $20,000 or spend 30 days in prison after pleading guilty to a charge of cruelty to animals in the St Andrew Parish Court on Tuesday.
Colleen Samuels was seen on video footage capturing her neighbours’ two Shih Tzu dogs on September 19, 2024, placing them in a rice bag, and driving away.
She later confessed to disposing of the animals.
READ: Kingston woman captures, disposes of neighbour’s ‘filthy’ Shih Tzus
Presiding Judge Sanchia Burrell, during sentencing, emphasised that the sentence was not only intended to punish Samuels but also to send a wider message about respect for the law, property and animal welfare.
“Miss Samuels, sentences are not just to communicate to you but to other members of society that citizens like you and I should have respect for the law and also have respect for the rights of other people. These dogs did not belong to you. I watched the video and just yesterday I was talking about it, not knowing that it was coming up today. There is also a general concern about people and how we treat animals. So we are encouraging you to treat animals with kindness,” she said.
Judge Burrell noted that Samuels’ health condition was considered when determining the sentence, but made clear her actions required some level of punishment.
“The purpose of my sentence is to punish you a little bit because you are a big woman, you know what you did wrong,” Burrell said.
Samuels’ lawyer argued that her actions stemmed from frustration, pointing to the condition of the dogs and the alleged neglect by their owner, “It was frustration, and might I also add that Miss Samuels also has dogs of her own, so it’s not a case where it is a behaviour that would suggest she is cruel. It’s just the poor state in which those animals were kept and the refusal of the complainant to care for those animals.”
Judge Burrell, however, maintained that Samuels should have reported the matter to the authorities rather than taking matters into her own hands.
— Vanassa McKenzie
