MAN WHO SHOT GAGA’S DOG WALKER GETS PRISON

The man who shot and wounded Lady Gaga’s dog walker while stealing her French bulldogs last year took a plea deal and was sentenced to 21 years in prison on Monday, officials said.

The Lady Gaga connection was a coincidence, authorities have said. The motive was the value of the French bulldogs, a breed that can run into the thousands of dollars, and detectives do not believe the thieves knew the dogs belonged to the musician.

James Howard Jackson, one of three men and two accomplices who participated in the violent robbery and its aftermath, pleaded no contest to one count of attempted murder, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. It was not immediately clear which attorney represented Howard on Monday.

The pop star’s dog walker, Ryan Fischer, was seriously wounded in the attack and addressed the court Monday to give an impact statement, which he posted on Instagram.

“It’s hard to believe that it’s nearing two years since I was taking Asia, Koji and Gustav out for an evening stroll when — in an instant — I suddenly found myself fighting with everything I had to protect those dogs from being stolen. But it wasn’t enough: I was beaten, strangled, shot and left to die bleeding out on a sidewalk and gasping for my life. And Koji and Gustav were gone.”

Jackson and two others drove around Hollywood, West Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley on Feb. 24, 2021, “looking for French bulldogs,” prosecutors said previously. They found Fischer with the pop star’s three pets.