Two-year jail term is welcomed for ‘psycho’ who killed and cooked dog
A TWO-year prison term for a “psychopath” former mental health nurse who killed, butchered and cooked his dog sends out a strong message, it was claimed last night.
Dominic O’Connor (28) used a lead to strangle the helpless pet, and then chopped it up and fed it to his other dog in Co Down last December.
He was banned from keeping an animal for life by a judge at Downpatrick Crown Court yesterday because of his “disgraceful” and “heinous” behaviour.
As he was led away to begin his sentence, a tearful onlooker shouted: “Burn in Hell, demon. You are the epitome of evil.”
After release O’Connor will serve another two years under licence in the community, Judge Piers Grant said.
He told the defendant: “The killing of this innocent, vulnerable dog has clearly been your calculation for some time.
“It is clear that you determined to kill this dog and in doing so inflict on this creature serious cruelty.
“In any view this behaviour is barbaric.”
The sentence has been welcomed by politicians, who said it sends out a strong message to anyone who mistreats animals. Green Party leader Steven Agnew said: “This has been the toughest sentencing of its kind for animal cruelty in Northern Ireland and it is good to see that the courts are at last taking the crime of animal cruelty seriously.”
DUP MLA Peter Weir said the jail term must serve as a warning to other potential animal cruelty perpetrators.
“It is difficult to think of a more cruel and serious crime of animal cruelty, and I would have liked the sentence to have been more severe, indeed reflecting the maximum five-year available,” he said.
“Nevertheless, the fact that it is a substantive custodial prison sentence is a step in the right direction.
“Even just a few years ago, time in prison was virtually unheard of, so it is important that the courts are finally beginning to listen to the concerns of the public and legislators over these issues.”
O’Connor bought the dog from someone on the Gumtree classifieds website who was “misled” into expecting that the animal would be well-nurtured and looked after, the judge said. Instead, he choked it to death at the second attempt at his home on Roden Street in the village of Kircubbin, Co Down, after switching leads.
O’Connor shaved, butchered and cooked the animal’s body and used it as pet food for his other dog, Judge Grant said.
He added: “It is appropriate to recognise that the level of cruelty inflicted on this poor animal is very much at the upper end of the spectrum for this type of offending.”
The action was calculated and O’Connor was aware of the risk of detection when he disposed of some of the remains in a black plastic bag in Portavogie Harbour, Co Down, the judge remarked.
He said the defendant demonstrated no remorse and posed a high risk of reoffending, but pre-sentence reports showed he did not represent a serious risk of harm to others. O’Connor, who was wearing a bright yellow sweater, remained expressionless in the dock, where he was guarded by prison officers.
Judge Grant said it was “inevitable” that the jury would convict him of one count of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.
No evidence was produced on O’Connor’s own behalf.
The judge said it would be easy to consider O’Connor’s behaviour bizarre and indicative of mental illness offering some excuse, but he noted that his legal team had not produced any reliable medical evidence about his mental health.
The defendant has 23 unrelated previous convictions, some of which demonstrated preparedness to act irresponsibly, the judge added.