The man accused of dragging his terminally ill dog along a
downtown sidewalk will appear in court Monday for his arraignment
hearing.
The man accused of dragging his terminally ill dog along a downtown sidewalk will appear in court Monday for his arraignment hearing.
The Santa Clara District Attorney will charge Kevin Fifield, 59 of Morgan Hill, with one count of felony animal cruelty and two counts of felony resisting or deterring an officer, according to D.A.’s office spokeswoman Amy Cornell.
Fifield’s initial arraignment hearing, scheduled for Friday afternoon, was postponed.
Fifield was arrested Tuesday after someone called police about 3:40 p.m., alerting them that Fifield was dragging a dog by her collar and leash on the sidewalk near Monterey Road and Second Street, police said. The witness told police the dog appeared to be “half dead.”
When police arrived, Fifield told them the situation was none of their business, and he picked up the 11-year-old, 25-pound Australian cattle dog and continued walking, police said. Officers stepped in front of him to stop him, and he threatened to kill at least one of them.
Fifield struggled briefly before officers were able to subdue him, Sgt. Jerry Neumayer said.
The dog was transported to San Martin Animal Hospital by the city’s animal control division. The dog, named Snowflake, had cancer and was diagnosed with a high fever. Her paws were bleeding because her nails had been ground down on the pavement due to being dragged.
Snowflake was in serious condition as of Thursday morning, but an update on her health status was not available at press time.
Fifield is still in custody in lieu of $100,000 bail.
If convicted of all the charges against him, Fifield faces a maximum sentence of four years and four months in state prison.
