Michael Johns released on appeal after being jailed for animal cruelty of ‘Little Miss Maeve’
The owner of a pregnant pet cow, which was assaulted in a gruesome manner by a neighbour, said he is “gobsmacked” the farmer has been released from jail on appeal.
Newcastle
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The owner of a pet cow, who was four months pregnant when his neighbour mowed it down with his car and slit its throat leaving it to suffer for hours, is “mortified” he has now been released from jail on appeal.
Hunter farmer Michael Kevin Johns, 37, was scolded by a Local Court Magistrate for his “cruel and callous” treatment of “Little Miss Maeve”, an Australian lowline heifer which had wandered onto his Brookfield property, near Dungog, in December last year.
Magistrate Brett Shields said it was the worst case of animal cruelty he had ever seen, and sentenced Johns to 16 months jail at Raymond Terrace Local Court on October 13.
But more than two weeks’ later, Johns was released on appeal in the District Court with his imprisonment quashed by Newcastle Judge Roy Ellis, instead ordered to serve his 16 month term as an intensive corrections order (ICO), a jail term within the community.
An 18 month community corrections order (CCO) will remain, as well as an order to pay the RSPCA $5096 in costs.
Owner Matt Anderson told The Newcastle News he was “gobsmacked” at what he did to the animal.
“To think someone could target our family pet who had a name,” he said.
“The fact this cow was the quietest one out of all of them and it would eat out of your hand.
“Through the drought we spent a lot of our life savings to keep these animals alive and to see someone do that with no remorse, it just breaks your heart.”
During sentencing, the court heard horrifying details of how Johns told Mr Anderson, “maybe you like to kill straight away, maybe I like to kill stuff slowly”.
Police facts said he got into his Toyota Landcruiser - targeting the neighbours family pet cow which was four months pregnant - before slamming his vehicle into the animal breaking its rear right leg.
He then took a pocket knife and slit a six inch deep gash into the animal’s throat leaving it in “considerable pain” as he continued to work on his property for several hours.
Johns also allowed 15 of his Maremma dogs to maul and attack the animal as it lay helpless on the ground, according to police facts.
It wasn’t until more than four hours later the distraught heifer’s owner euthanised the animal, putting an end to its suffering.
Following an investigations by rural crime detectives, Johns was arrested in February.
Johns pleaded guilty to torture, beat and seriously injure an animal and failing to prevent his dogs from escaping. Four other charges were dropped which included torture, beat and cause prolonged suffering to animal, commit an aggravated act of animal cruelty, dog attacks due to owner’s reckless act and fail to prevent a dog from escaping relating to occasions in January and February.
He also pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to provide veterinary treatment for a Maremma sheepdog puppy, where the animal was found to have poor body condition and intestinal parasitism.
on Sentencing, Magistrate Shields said the harm and suffering to the animal was “utterly appalling”.
“Animals have every right to be treated humanely,” he said.