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Couple gets jail time in animal-abuse case
(by Sue Reid - April 07, 2011)
Couple gets jail time in animal-abuse case
By SUE REID
A Solon couple charged last year with animal abuse and child endangering will serve jail time and probation, following a change-of-plea hearing held yesterday (April 6) in Bedford Municipal Court.
Steven and Heidi D. Friedman, who were arrested and charged last summer after 39 animals were found living in what were described as deplorable conditions in their home, changed their not-guilty plea to no contest at yesterday's hearing.
As part of the agreement, the original 39 counts of cruelty to animals were reduced to three, and the child-endangering counts were dismissed, Solon City Prosecutor Lon D. Stolarsky said.
The couple will each serve 14 days in jail, with a work release as part of the agreement, and be on probation for three years, during which time they will be prohibited from owning animals and having minor children in their home. They also will undergo psychological assessment and comply with whatever recommendations are reached, Mr. Stolarsky said.
"It adequately reflects the seriousness of the charges that they are pleading to three counts of animal cruelty," Mr. Stolarsky said.
As for the child-endangering counts being dismissed, he said, "When the animals were found, the children were out of town, so we don't really know what the condition was when the children were living there."
The two juveniles in the home were relocated to Florida last year to stay with relatives. A number of motions have been filed for the parents to be able to visit the children in Florida, and a couple of them have been granted.
The case arose last August, when a neighbor reported an odor coming from the home on Wagon Wheel Drive.
Found in the home were 25 dogs, eight cats, two guinea pigs, one rabbit and three birds. They had been left alone in the house for a week while the homeowners were in Florida, police said. The windows of the home were closed, and the air conditioning was off, according to the report. Temperatures that week reached 90 degrees on most days.
According to the police report, everything in the home, including clothing and items on the floor, was covered in animal feces. The second-floor master bedroom had a few inches of dog feces packed down on the floor, police said. The front room of the house had a baby pool on the floor that contained brown water, and there was no dog food in the house, they reported.
Due to the poor health conditions of the animals, all, expect the three birds, were euthanized at the Solon Veterinary Clinic. That was based on the request of the homeowners and at their cost. The three parakeets were given to the Animal Protective League.
The house was condemned and subsequently cleaned. It was declared to be fit for human habitation by the Cuyahoga County Department of Health in December.
"A lot of the waiting on the case was reflective on getting the house cleaned up," Mr. Stolarsky said. "We didn't want to resolve the case until that portion of it was dealt with." He said it was his understanding that the Friedmans currently are living in the home.
The Friedmans made their original plea of not guilty last September. They were represented by attorney Edward Rausch, and the case was in Judge Harry Jacob III's court.
Solon resident Tess McCarihan, an animal advocate who pursued charges following a horse-abuse case in Orange last year which was settled in March, said she was pleased with this case's outcome.
"I am happy with the change of plea and with the sentence." She said she also is pleased that Mr. Jacob "is enforcing our animal cruelty laws in his court.
"Hopefully, the public is observing what is happening in the courts and, as a result, further cases of animal cruelty will be deterred."
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