I thought I was done with the Bones story, I was wrong

I was sure that I was done with the freak show that is the Bones affair but I was so wrong.  The insanity marches on.

Lets start with the Fourth Amendment  ""The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
This quote comes from Laws.com "The Fourth Amendment specifically requires a law enforcement agency to possess judicially sanctioned search and arrest warrants, which are supported by probable clause, to be administered before a person’s property can be inspected."

This quote comes from PINow.com  describing what a Private Investigator cannot legally do.
Trespass.  Private investigators cannot enter a property, house, or building through illegal means, including breaking and entering.  Though trespassing laws very from state to state, in some jurisdictions the investigator must have permission from the owner before entering a property.

The searches of the property formerly known as the North West Ohio Underdog Rescue were not headed by law enforcement with a valid court order.  The searches were not headed by a Private Investigator with permission by the owner, in this case Kat Sutter. Neither of these professions had the right to trespass on private property to search for evidence of a crime without a valid court order.  Why would the Lexus Project authorize trespass and search of private property by ordinary citizens and expect that any evidence found would be admissible in court proceedings against Kat Sutter?   The Lexus Project is made up of lawyers, why might they feel that they are above the law?   As disgusting as Sutter may be, she has legal rights.

Now that the illegal search of Sutter's property is complete the Lexus Project wants the public to fund the analysis of the illegally obtained remains of dogs that they did not own taken from property where they had no legal right to search.  The Lexus Project has set up a chip-in page for just this purpose.

The Lexus Project has continued to post details on their public Facebook page. Details of exactly how the Lexus Project intends to proceed indicates that the public is expected to foot the bill for legal action as well as necropsy costs.  In  a comment on the necropsy chip-in post a question is asked about setting up another chip-in to pay for a lawyer to "put (Sutter) away for a long time and ban her from ever having animals again." The response from the Lexus Project?  Business as usual.

The Lexus Project, Legal Defense for Dogs Right now the humane society is doing an investigation. If we need an attorney, we have one pro bono on stand by and would only need to collect for court fees as we do our usual cases.

In comments following a discussion of the death of another dog in the possession of North West Ohio Underdog Rescue The Lexus Project had this to say. "This is not about who sent her where, this is not about we save dogs that bite or are deemed dangerous and people don't like it, this is not about TLP stance on greyhound racing in the USA, this is about 2 dogs reported missing by the very person who vowed to care for them, only to be found mutilated in shallow graves in her backyard. 

People, get your priorities straight. - MK

There you have it.  The Lexus Project is well aware that their actions are not supported by the public.  "This is not about we save dogs that bite or are deemed dangerous and people don't like it."

Nope, the public sure doesn't like it and the public would like Lexus Project to "get their priorities straight." The goals of the Lexus Project are clearly out of touch with the priorities and safety of the public.

Update 10/3/2013  Please click here.  Per Northwest Ohio.com "Greg Willoughby of the Toledo Area Humane Society says his agency is investigating Ms. Sutter.  Willoughby is concerned that the Lexus Project's actions Wednesday night at Ms. Sutter's Luann Avenue home may hamper the investigation.  "It may make our case more difficult because we weren't there to witness it, our veterinarians didn't see the animals and our officers weren't part of it,"

Update 10/8/2013

This is what we may expect to see from any attempt to prosecute Kat Sutter using evidence removed from her property by volunteers sent by the Lexus Project without a court order. Let me set this up so you can follow the story.  Lee Coleman Krisle will go free after a judge ordered that key evidence must be suppressed.  Krisle was charged with eight counts of animal cruelty.

Per the Tennessean " The animal cruelty case against Robertson County businessman Lee Coleman Krisle has been dismissed after a judge ordered that most of the key evidence in the case be suppressed."
“I felt we did not have enough evidence to take what was left of the case to a jury,” said Robertson County Assistant District Attorney Dent Morriss. “So, I reluctantly dismissed it. At least we were able to get the animals that were there out of the situation they were in.”" Krisle, 55, was charged with eight counts of animal cruelty in February. His original indictment, handed down by the Robertson County Grand Jury, claims that he failed to provide needed food and water, along with proper shelter and care for eight animals – seven horses and one mule. Documents also describe the mule as having an injured leg with wire wrapped around it."


This is one of Mr. Krisle's horses.


This is another one of Mr. Krisle's horses.  The mule was euthanized at the time the horses were picked up.

"At an August court hearing, Robertson County Judge Michael R. Jones ordered that evidence collected during a search of Krisle's property could not be used in trial because the search warrant was not valid, according to court documents.

The warrant was thrown out because an employee of the Humane Society of the United States signed it, but the employee was not authorized to do so, according to Krisle.  The rules of criminal procedure require that search warrant applications be made by law enforcement officers."

10/9/2013 update.  No charges will be filled against Kat Sutter.  Per the Dayton Daily News the executive director of the Toledo Area Humane Society  stated there is "insufficient evidence" to press charges.

Bones, the end of the story

The Bones saga has come to a not unexpected end.  The remains of Bones were unearthed from the property formerly known as North West Ohio Underdog Rescue, run by self proclaimed dangerous dog expert Kat Sutter.  For the Toledo Blade coverage of the recovery of Bones remains please click here.

For the the original blog on the disappearance of Bones click here.  Fore more information on the Bones disaster please click here.   And for still more click here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and finally here.

The Lexus Project has posted their thoughts on the death of Bones.  This statement appeared on their public Facebook page on 9/29/2013.

Bones is dead. We exhumed his body. Please read.

Bones is dead, he was sick, he was never brought to the vet and was starved to death by Kat before Christmas 2012. She made him suffer. She buried him next to her garage, then concocted the story that he was stolen January 5, 2013 hoping to use her father's funeral to divert attention from her crimes. She had people call day, night and the middle of the night giving false sightings knowing that Bones that been dead weeks already.

Though the many inconsistencies in Kat's story made us sure she was lying, it was not until this week that we got a break, in the form of an email that led us to obtain the remains of Bones. Today, Bones body was exhumed from Kats backyard. We believe there are other bodies back there, but we are sure she will be busy in the next few days trying to cover her tracks by exhuming the others. The exhumation of Bones body was done with the press there, the whole process was captured. Necropsy this evening confirmed it was Bones. Cause of death will be determined as well.

We were also informed that Sasha, the malamute was shot in the head. There was a dispute about her training and $500.00 so Kat had the dog offed. Sasha is also buried in her backyard as well as a dog named Bear. Our sources tell us that the backyard smells like death.

Bones loved and trusted Kat. She betrayed his trust and watched him die right in front of her eyes.

Justice will be served, but we need all your help.

We truly believed we were doing the right thing sending bones to Kat. We had 2 outside references and nothing was on the internet to dispute the references. We got pictures and happy texts with positive updates from Kat up until September of 2012. It was only after Bones went missing that everyone seemed to know what a monster he went to. Everyone except those 2 references. I pray they open their eyes now.

Please Call the Toledo Ohio police department.

419-245-3340

Tell them how you feel about Ms. Katherine Sutter and the killing fields at 4905 Luann Drive, Toledo Ohio


Call animal warden. Julie Lyle @ 419-213-2800 about the dogs that are still buried at the house.

Animal control in Woods County where she now lives.

Chief Warden, Andrew Snyder 419-354-9367

Deputy warden, Rodney Cook 419-354-9093

Deputy warden, Nora Davis, 419-354-9239

Deputy warden, Justin Gallagher, 419-373-4947


And call the humane society because Kat has dogs NOW. And we are VERY, VERY concerned about these dogs. 419-891-9777

Special thanks to JIm Sielicki from the Toledo Blade who stayed with this story from when Bones supposedly went missing in January until now.

The Lexus Project

Forever Rest In Peace

On 9/29/2013 this statement was added "We didn't think it was necessary to announce who referred TLP to Kat, but apparently others disagree. One of the groups that referred her was "URGENT Ohio". They do advocate for dogs and they made a BIG mistake so please don't take way from what they do do. I'm sure they feel just as bad as we do, possibly worse since we are not an adoption or placement group and Bones was one of our very first non greyhound cases, we were led to believe that this was THE only place for Bones to go. As long as they learned from their mistake and sees now what a deadly mistake it was, there's no reason to undermine the good they do."

It will be interesting to see if a cause of death can be determined, starvation seems unlikely but certainly possible, however it stands to reason that there would be a substantial difference in weight between a living dog and a skeleton exhumed nine months later.  The weight difference as the result of decomposition seems worth consideration.

 The Lexus post discusses the two other dogs that Sutter claimed went missing from her operation.  Lexus states that Sasha was shot in the head and buried in the yard and that Bear was buried in the yard as well.  The Toledo Blade does not report these facts, only suspicions of these charges.

Apparently the Blade had a reporter and photographer on site when Bones skeleton was found but the article states that police were called only after the remains were found.  Police refused to view the yard or the remains, this was an illegal search. What authority did the Lexus Project volunteers and the Toledo Blade's photographer and reporter have to be on the property?   Would any evidence obtained by illegal search be of any use?  I don't think so.

Take a look at the slide show provided by the Blade.  What responsible legal organization would send a designated dangerous dog to this tiny home on a street of small yards without fences, to live in a garage with fifteen other designated dangerous dogs?  Lexus Project did. It must be kept in mind that the Lexus Project has initiated an effort similar to the one used to "save" Bones.  This time they want to save Onion, a dog that killed the grandchild of the owner.  If they "save" Onion will they use more care in selecting a long term dangerous dog facility than they did when they chose the North West Ohio Underdog Rescue?

Did the Lexus Project "save" Bones?  Even if Sutter had been the lion tamer that the Lexus Project thought she was, is living out the rest of the dog's life in a little garage behind a tiny home in Toledo Ohio really living? Would this "life" be significantly better than humane euthanization in New York?  Will this mess be repeated with Onion?


What about Onion?  What has been the quality of his life since the death of Jeremiah Eskew-Shanahan who was attacked and killed by this dog at the toddler's first birthday party in the spring of 2012?


This is Onion, this is how he has "lived" for the last year and a half.  Is this "living"?  The Lexus Project is responsible for this.

The Lexus Project works hard to rescue Greyhounds and this is a commendable effort, I respect this greatly. I can't respect the meddling in vicious dog dispositions.  This should be a local matter, decided by those close to the investigations and having a stake in the community, without the bullying by out of state animal rights lawyers.  The interstate transport of violent dogs should be regulated by federal law.  

For video of the former site of North West Ohio Underdog Rescue and the current location of this "rescue" please click here.  Note that the Lexus Project is now trying to get a court order to dig at the Luann Ave. location.  A bit late.  It should also be noted that the Lexus Project no longer owns Bones, he was signed over to a local bully rescue group in April.

Update 10/1/2013  The New York Times quotes veterinarian Stephen Graber as stating  “I can’t positively say he was starved, but I would bet he was in an extreme state of malnutrition.”  Malnutrition is inferred from skeletal measurements, the malnourished do not grow to expected size.  This was a massive adult dog and there is no proof of, or reason to believe that the dog was sick or starved. This is not the cause of death that the Lexus Project hoped for.

Per the Times article, Robin Mittasch of the Lexus Project organized the dig at the Luann Ave. property although the Lexus Project no longer owned the dog and had no legal authority to be on that property.  Did she think to run this idea past her husband, Rich Rosenthal the attorney?  Can you imagine the breakfast table conversation?  "Rich, I'm thinking about organizing some of our volunteers to trespass and dig up a property in Toledo Ohio.  An illegal search for the remains of a dog we don't own.  What do you think?"    

The Bones Saga Continues

Bones, the dog too dangerous to remain in New York City, has been missing since January 5th and is reportedly at large in Toledo Ohio.  Despite efforts of volunteers the dog has not been found.  Just a short review, Bones was involved in a murder in New York. A coroner's report was required to determine the cause of David Shadha's death, the attack by Bones or the head  injury inflicted on David by Bones owner Shaun Dyer.  For additional review please click here.


This is Bones and yes, that is David Shadha's blood all over him.

The legal owner of Bones is the Lexus Project, a group of animal rights lawyers headquartered in New York.  The Lexus Project will defend any dog against any charges up to and including the mauling death of a child if the owner of the dog will sign a contract and set up a Chip-In page on Facebook. The Lexus Project went wild in their efforts to protect Bones. This is a petition from the Bones Battle page.  Keep in mind that Bones Battle is the Lexus Project.

DEMAND that the AC&C and NY DOH - let Bones live!

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• signatures: 2,480
• signature goal: 2,500

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• Target: New York (AC&C) Animal Care & Control. Department of Health (DOH)
• Sponsored by: http://www.facebook.com/BonesBattle

http://www.facebook.com/BonesBattle

WE THE UNDERSIGNED DEMAND THAT BONES BE ALLOWED TO LIVE!

Bones is the victim here and he should not be held responsible for a murder he did not commit.

Nor should the Department of Health be allowed to quietly kill Bones because he was a victim of abuse and because they failed to do their job back in June.

Had they done what they were supposed to and properly investigate, Bones would not be in this situation now.

STORY: http://bslnews.org/

Bones, a dog will most likely be killed by the New York City Department of Health because he might have been an unwilling accomplice in the murder of his junkie owners roommate.

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New York Animal Care and Control gave the Lexus Project exactly what they demanded.  "Here, take the dog and get it out of town."  The Lexus Project saw this as a huge public relations win.  Surely these lawyers would consider the options and send Bones to a reputable and secure facility.

Oops, not so much. Bones was sent to Kat Sutter and her North West Ohio Underdog Rescue located on a quiet residential street in densely populated Toledo Ohio to live in a garage with 15 other dangerous dogs.  Sutter claims that  dangerous dogs are her specialty.  There was no inspection of Sutter's facility and Sutter was unknown to the Lexus Project save a recommendation from someone later termed "a flake" by the Lexus Project.  

Enough history and on to current events.  The Bones Battle Facebook page is again being run out of New York after a short period of administration by Toledo resident Carissa Curry.   A recent posting on Bones Battle claims a verified sighting of Bones in Toledo on the day he disappeared.  On 2/28/2013 this was posted by the Bones Battle administrator

Bones battle

Thursday

We received a call from someone in the area where Bones lived with Kat In Toledo. She says she definitely saw Bones the morning of jan. 5, the day we were notified of his disappearance. She also had emails and voicemails to us of disturbing information of how Kat kept the dogs. She wishes to remain anonymous because she is afraid of Kat. She did call the dog warden (which had already been done in both locations). We check in the police once a week. We do drive bys at both locations randomly. Someone is still at the old house. We are hoping that the one thing we are working on will come to pass, other than that with not one sighting ever, we're hitting a brick wall.

With a sighting that the Lexus Project considers reliable has the Lexus Project finally realized their potential for liability?  It appears so.  The very same day, 2/28/2013 the Bones Battle administrator made another post. 

Bones battle

Thursday

Will someone who lives in Toledo or woods county take legal ownership of Bones so the ownership of him is local and you can physically stay on top of this?

 One follower of the page questioned just how this transfer of title would be accomplished.  The answer "just sign a piece of paper, just like TLP did."  It might be wise for anyone considering this generous offer to take a moment and consider that in addition to title of a designated dangerous dog they also assume all legal liability for this designated dangerous dog.  

The Lexus Project is run by lawyers, they understand legal liability.  The Lexus Project wants somebody else to assume the risk.  More poor planning and irresponsible action here.  Just "signing a piece of paper" has consequences.  The Lexus Project lawyers have finally realized this.    

3/4/2013 Update - The Lexus Project is feeling cranky that no one is willing to accept legal responsibility for Bones.   The Lexus Project made a demand to New York Animal Care and Control.  They got exactly what they demanded.  Be careful what you wish for.  This is the comment that was posted by Lexus Project after the "generous" offer of ownership of Bones.   

The Lexus Project, Legal Defense for Dogs Everyone wants and expects but no one will step up. It's nice to want.

22 hours ago · Like · 1 

The Lexus Project, specializing in Greyhounds, has apparently realized that despite the hysteria generated by pit bull advocacy there is no reciprocal effort.   

The Lexus Project, Legal Defense for Dogs shared a link.

Friday

TGIF!We need our pit bull friends to help our greyhound friends as we have helped the pitties
so often. Please make a donation. We go to trial on march 11.

Stunning silence from pit bull advocacy.