Posted on: Friday, January 14, 2005

Woman charged with animal cruelty

By David Waite
Advertiser Staff Writer

Former dog breeder and kennel operator Lucy Kagan was served Wednesday with a penal summons accusing her of 25 counts of animal cruelty.

The charges stem from a May 7, 2003, incident in which firefighters who put out a kitchen fire at Kagan's rented Hawai'i Kai condominium reported finding nearly 30 dogs living in squalid conditions inside the condo.

Kagan denied she was mistreating the animals, but the Hawaiian Humane Society seized almost half of the dogs and required that the others be returned to their legal owners.

The seized dogs were eventually returned to Kagan based on her assurances that they would be properly cared for. An 18-month court battle between Kagan and the Humane Society followed because of Kagan's inability or unwillingness to account for all of the dogs or to make them available for inspection by society-sanctioned veterinarians.

Kagan could not be reached yesterday to comment on the summons, but Humane Society officials welcomed the news that she had been charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty.

"The Humane Society has invested thousands of dollars and thousands of hours in this case," society officials said in a statement. "(Alleged) cruelty had to be meticulously documented. Veterinarian care had to be provided. Ownership of the animals had to be sorted out. It's been over a year and a half since we rescued nearly 30 animals from the filth and stench that they were living in.

"Their living environment was deplorable. We have been vigilant in our push for justice and will continue to be. We're very satisfied that charges have been brought against Kagan ... ," Humane Society officials said in the statement.

The summons calls for Kagan to be arraigned on Jan. 28. Each of the counts against Kagan is a full misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and/or a fine of up to $2,000.

Reach David Waite at 525-7412 or dwaite@honoluluadvertiser.com.