Gun used in dog fight leads to prison

‘You’ve got to control your temper,’ judge says

WEST CHESTER >> When two dogs get in a street tussle, fangs bared and barking, it can be a scary experience for the owners involved.

But what Desmond Johnson did to try to defuse the situation not only ranks as a spot on “Top 10 Things Not To Do In a Dog Fight,” it also landed him in Chester County Prison for the next three months.

Johnson, 35, of Royersford, Montgomery County, pulled a gun on the owner of the dog who was fighting with his pit bull, Enzo. Pointing it at the startled owner, Johnson allegedly told her that if she did not control the canine, he would shoot it.

On Thursday, Common Pleas Judge Anthony Sarcione sentenced Johnson to three to 23 months in prison, plus an additional year of consecutive probation, on charges of terroristic threats and harassment. He also ordered him to pay $55 for the other dogs veterinarian bills.

“The problem here is that to use a gun in the manner you did, it caused serious harm to this lady,” said Sarcione after listening to arguments from the prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Cynthia Morgan, and Johnson’s defense attorney, Evan Kelly of West Chester. “Everyone loves their animals and wants to protect them. But you’ve got to control your temper.”

Morgan had asked Sarcione to sentenced Johnson, who has a prior criminal record in both Chester and Montgomery counties, to a minimum of four months in county prison. She said that whatever the provocation he might have encountered when Enzo started fighting with the other pet, a Rho-