No punishment fitting enough for pit bull’s tormentor

How ironic — no, how fitting! — that Radoslaw Czerkawski, the sadistic tormentor of a ravaged pit bull known as Puppy Doe, will be brought be- fore a Norfolk Superior Court judge this afternoon to learn what his punishment ought to be.

That’s quite a role reversal.

He who showed no mercy now finds himself in need of it, proving what goes around does indeed come around, and thank goodness it did in this case because this reprehensible defendant is the personification of a cold, barren soul.

And animal lovers aren’t the only ones livid at the thought of him.

The 37-year-old illegal Polish immigrant had been hired as a caretaker for a 95-year-old woman in the ruthless grips of dementia. Learning of his heartless disregard for her well-being, anyone with personal knowledge of that vicious disease would jump at a chance to throttle him.

In her death, however, Puppy Doe speaks for them.

She’s dead because vets, horrified by the condition she was in when officials found her, decided the most compassionate thing they could do for Puppy Doe was to terminate her life. Imagine, the kindest thing they could do for her was to help her die.

Puppies are perfect punching bags for cowards. Think of it: They can’t dial 911, can’t testify and can’t identify barbarians who mistreat them.

But sometimes the rest of us get to speak for them.

That’s what’s going to happen this afternoon.

The judge will be asked to decide what punishment would properly fit the defendant’s crimes. Czerkawski has made that quite a challenge.

After all, what punishment would adequately fit whipping a helpless pup with a heavy instrument, stabbing her in the eye, repeatedly burning her, and yanking her limbs from their joints, as well as starving her and somehow slicing her tongue down the middle?

Can you think of a commensurate punishment?

No? Nothing comes to mind here either.

Every scenario seems inadequate because in all of them he ends up fed and nurtured.

We like to think of ourselves as civilized, but every so often that instinct is sorely tested and this is one of those instances.

Who knows? Maybe there are dog lovers in the joint, perhaps even inmates who still have a faithful dog at home — you know, man’s best friend, that dog who’ll always love them, no matter what they did.

Maybe they’re reading this right now.

Czerkawski’s trial will soon be over, but the guessing here is that his journey has just begun.