Posted on: Wednesday, May 29, 2002
More dogs at Ha'iku home prompt weekly inspection
By Christie Wilson
Neighbor Island Editor
WAILUKU, Maui — A county prosecutor yesterday expressed concern that a Ha'iku couple charged with animal cruelty for keeping 96 dogs and cats in their home may be accumulating more pets.
At a Wailuku District Court hearing yesterday, Deputy Prosecutor Mark Simonds said there are reports of a new litter of puppies at the West Lelehuna Place home of Timothy and Marilyn "Jean" Bermudez, who are charged with 85 counts each of cruelty to animals, a misdemeanor that carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $2,000 fine for each count.
Attorney David Sereno, representing Jean Bermudez, said the woman had a couple of new dogs that are receiving "perfectly good care" but that there are no puppies in the home.
Simonds requested that animal control officers be allowed to inspect the Bermudez property on a weekly basis.
Sereno said that without a search warrant, repeated unannounced visits would be unreasonable. At Judge Rhonda Loo's suggestion, both sides agreed to arrange a schedule of weekly inspections.
Loo also granted a request by Sereno and Deputy Public Defender Adriel Menor, representing Timothy Bermudez, to postpone arraignment until June 18 to give the attorneys more time to obtain police records in the case.
The Bermudezes will be tried separately because of incriminating statements each made against the other, Simonds said after the hearing.
Animal control officers removed 81 dogs and 14 cats from the modest, three-bedroom home Jan. 4 after Jean Bermudez called for assistance because the dogs were fighting. Another mauled dog was found dead inside the house.
All but seven of the animals were euthanized because of poor health or lack of space at the Maui Humane Society animal shelter. One of the cats and two of the dogs were adopted, and four dogs were sent last week to an animal sanctuary in Utah.
Simonds said the state's animal cruelty law includes depriving pets of sufficient food, water and shelter. Pet owners also are required to provide an area of confinement with adequate space and to keep animals reasonably clean and free of excess waste.
The dogs, including a number of puppies, were kept in rooms that were partitioned into pens. The cats were kept in kitchen cabinets that had been converted into cages. Animal control officers reported the floors were covered with animal feces and puddles of urine.
Jean Bermudez has insisted that her pets were well cared for and loved, and Sereno said yesterday in court that she had "no malice in her heart toward any of the animals."
Simonds said after the hearing that the situation appears to be a classic case of "animal collecting," in which people with good intentions who can't bear the thought of euthanasia keep large numbers of animals in their homes. Although the collectors may think they are saving the animals, they may be blind to the fact they are keeping them in inhumane conditions without proper care.
