ATLANTIC, Iowa (AP) _ A 57-year-old western Iowa man who fatally shot a dog has
been given a year of probation and a two-year suspended prison sentence.
Station KJAN reports that Charles Cutler, of Marne, was sentenced on Tuesday. He was convicted in April of misdemeanor animal abuse.
Authorities say Cutler used a shotgun to blast a 1-year-old chocolate Labrador
retriever named Wrigley. The dog belonged to Stacey Ernat, a teacher from Denver
who had stopped in Marne with her boyfriend to visit her boyfriend’s brother on
Dec. 24. The couple was headed to eastern Iowa.
Cutler testified that Wrigley and another dog that lived nearby with the
brother had growled at him. Cutler said he feared for his safety and that of his
pets, so he got his shotgun and opened fire.
