Published: August 18, 2008 11:22 am            

Three indicted for dog fighting

Three men facing charges of animal cruelty after police discovered evidence of alleged dogfighting ring were indicted Friday in Laurel County Circuit Court.

Joe C. Lewis III, Joe C. Lewis, Jr., and Dalton Brewer were indicted by a grand jury on charges of first-degree cruelty to animals. Joe Lewis III was also indicted on one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, first offense.

Members of the Laurel County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched at around 1 a.m. June 25 to a residence on Adams Road in North Corbin in reference to a complaint of dogfighting.

Once they arrived, deputies found a pit bull tied to a tree. According to police, the dog appeared to have been fighting.

Police located the dog’s owner, Joe Lewis III, along with his father, Joe Lewis, Jr., and friend Dalton Brewer, who, according to police, denied the dogfighting, although one of the men had blood on his clothing.

According to police, the pit bull’s owners had allegedly caught a stray dog that had been running around the neighborhood and had tied it to a stairwell near the home. Police said there were several areas of blood leading to where the stray was being kept.

Deputy Richard Sapcut believes the men learned police were on the way to the residence via a police scanner and cut the stray dog loose. They then attempted to wash blood off the pit bull, but Sapcut said bite wounds were visible on the dog when police arrived.

The stray was later found under a wooden deck near the residence. Sapcut said evidence was present that this dog, too, had been fighting. According to police, both dogs were injured to the point that they had to be helped off the property by employees of the Laurel County Animal Shelter.

After further investigation, police say they discovered the names of 67 dogs — such as The Ripper, Cut Throat, The Butcher and The Beast — as well as several kennel names — including Syndicate Pits, Midwest Mafia, Killa Capos Kennel and Strait Beast — which they believed to be involved in dogfighting.

Lewis, Jr., Lewis III and Brewer were not arrested following the incident, but Sapcut said at the time he was building a case to have them indicted.

Laurel County Animal Shelter supervisor David Coffey said the dogs have recovered well, but are being held at the shelter to be used as evidence in the case.

On the charges of first-degree cruelty to animals, a Class D felony, the three men face one to five years in prison if convicted.

Also indicted were two men who allegedly failed to comply with sex offender registry laws. Jimmy Caldwell and James Pennington were each indicted on one count of failure to comply with the sex offender registry, first offense, and second-degree persistent felony offender.

According to police, Caldwell had moved from his registered address in Laurel County in late April. An arrest warrant by the London Police had been issued for him in mid-July.

On July 24, Caldwell was located by Deputy Chad Gregory of the Knox County Sheriff’s Office at the Damien Circle School House Apartments, about three miles south of Corbin, where Caldwell was staying with a woman.

Police said when officers entered the apartment, Caldwell was found hiding in the kitchen cabinets. Caldwell had previously been convicted of second-degree sexual abuse of a 7-year-old victim and was required to keep his address registered with local law enforcement.

Pennington, following his arrest for allegedly masturbating on lingerie in the fitting room of the Williamsburg Wal-Mart, had an arrest warrant issued for him in late June. A police investigation found that he had resided at the Christian Homeless Shelter, located in London. Sgt. Joe Smith of the London Police Department said because they did not have a physical address for Pennington, officials wanted to have the warrant issued while he was incarcerated in Whitley County.

Previously, Pennington had been convicted of first-degree unlawful imprisonment of a minor in Perry County.



The grand jury also returned the following indictments:

• Roy Osborne, driving on DUI suspended license (third offense), receiving stolen property over $300, theft of license plate, driving under the influence (third offense)

• Rodney Jeffries, cultivating five or more marijuana plants (first offense), first-degree possession of a controlled substance (first offense), receiving stolen property over $300, possession of marijuana, first-degree possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a police radio

• Valerie Young, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance (first offense) (two counts)

• Richard Smith, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance (first offense)

• Richard Yocum, second-degree trafficking in a controlled substance (first offense) (two counts)

• Marsha Smith, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance (second offense) (two counts), trafficking in marijuana less than 8 ounces (second offense), second-degree persistent felony offender

• Hank Moore, second-degree trafficking in a controlled substance (first offense), first-degree persistent felony offender

• Freddie Phillips, cultivating five or more marijuana plants (first offense)

• Quinlan Miracle, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, theft by unlawful taking over $300

• Jason Weiss, theft by unlawful taking over $300

• Anthony Gregory, second-degree burglary, theft by unlawful taking over $300, first-degree criminal mischief

• Shawn Henderson, Jason LaFountain and Dale LaFountain, burning property to defraud insurance

• Richard Bradley, second-degree burglary, possession of burglary tools

• Thomas Murray, theft of license plate, leaving the scene of an accident, no insurance, no license plate

• George Couch, Jr., first-degree burglary, first-degree wanton endangerment (two counts), kidnapping, third-degree criminal mischief

• Steven Williams, theft by unlawful taking over $300 (four counts), first-degree criminal mischief; second indictment returned for first-degree burglary, criminal mischief, theft of a firearm; third indictment returned for second-degree escape; fourth indictment returned for second-degree burglary, theft by unlawful taking over $300, giving police false name, third-degree criminal mischief, theft by unlawful taking less than $300

• Kevin Smith, first-degree possession of a controlled substance (second offense), unlawful transaction with a minor, possession of drug paraphernalia (second offense), careless driving, no seat belt, driving under the influence (first offense), possession of marijuana

• Michael Carr, first-degree possession of a controlled substance (first offense) (two counts), driving under the influence (first offense), third-degree possession of a controlled substance (first offense), possession of a controlled substance in improper container (first offense) (three counts), possession of drug paraphernalia (first offense), second-degree persistent felony offender

• Michael Yocum, theft by unlawful taking over $300, first-degree criminal mischief, first-degree persistent felony offender

• Loretta Yocum, theft by unlawful taking over $300, first-degree criminal mischief

• Jeremiah Knighting, theft by unlawful taking over $300, first-degree criminal mischief, second-degree persistent felony offender

• Carol Caudill, third-degree assault, resisting arrest, second-degree disorderly conduct

• Raymond Jackson, first-degree fleeing/evading, driving under the influence (fourth offense), driving on DUI suspended license (third offense), criminal mischief, resisting arrest, reckless driving, possession of an open alcoholic beverage container in a vehicle, first-degree persistent felony offender

• Jason Collett, second-degree escape, first-degree persistent felony offender

• Jeremy Gatewood, driving under the influence (fourth offense), driving on DUI suspended license (third offense), resisting arrest, third-degree possession of a controlled substance (first offense)

• Joseph Darnell, driving under the influence (fourth offense), driving on DUI suspended license (third offense), carrying a concealed deadly weapon

• David Philpot, second-degree possession of a forged instrument (two counts), second-degree persistent felony offender; second indictment for theft by unlawful taking over $300, second-degree persistent felony offender

• John King, third-degree burglary, first-degree criminal mischief, theft by unlawful taking over $300

• Samuel Conley, receiving stolen property over $300

• Jessica Stacy, welfare fraud

• Stanley Taylor, welfare fraud

• William Brown, receiving stolen property over $300

• Eric Holland, second-degree burglary, theft by unlawful taking over $300

• Chad Witt, manufacturing meth (first offense); second indictment for receiving stolen property over $300

• James Miller, receiving stolen property over $300

• Steven Hill, fraudulent use of a credit card, second-degree persistent felony offender

• Lisa Hill, aka Lisa Mills, fraudulent use of a credit card

• Richard Shebley, theft by unlawful taking over $300

• Lola Pennington, theft by unlawful taking over $300, second-degree disorderly conduct

• Amanda Thomas, conspiracy to possess meth precursor (first offense), possession of meth precursor (first offense), first-degree possession of a controlled substance (first offense), tampering with physical evidence, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia (first offense), second-degree possession of a controlled substance (first offense)

• Arville Thomas, Jr., aka Orville Thomas, Jr., conspiracy to possess meth precursor (first offense), possession of meth precursor (first offense), first-degree persistent felony offender

• Samuel McQueen, conspiracy to possess meth precursor (first offense), possession of meth precursor (first offense), first-degree persistent felony offender

• Arthur Bentley, conspiracy to possess meth precursor (first offense), possession of meth precursor (first offense)

• Jacqueline Smith, first-degree fleeing/evading, receiving stolen property less than $300 (two counts)

• Brandon Thorp, Joshua Collins and Joshua Morris, first-degree burglary, theft of a firearm, theft by unlawful taking over $300

• James Trevor Hays, flagrant non support

• Gregory Murray, bigamy

• Anthony Cowden, theft by failure to make required disposition over $300

• William Stigall, Sr., intimidating a witness



The grand jury continued cases against the following people:

Walter Cox, Christina Goss, David Brannon, Sandra Gale Clark, Dustin Smith, Joseph Smith, Richard Haas, Davan Melton, John Hodge, Arnold Williams, Kevin R. Mitchell, Brian Terry, Troy Cox, Teresa Simmons, Kelly Lee Napier II, Lorene Lewis, Jacqueline Smith, Teresa Ann Napier, Lowell Floyd, Ursula Boshers, William Preston Jones, Jason LaFountain, Donnie Smith, Steven Williams, Joseph Jones, James Simms, John Walter Peters, Tabitha Henderson, Tammy Smith, Warren Browning



The grand jury dismissed cases against the following people:

Walter Yocum, Roy Johnson, Krystal Walker, John Martin, Sr., Charles Hatton, Billy Eugene Pharis, Sr., Robert Sisco, George Couch, Jr., Marsha Lynn Smith, Benjamin Burndette, Dwain Neal Bailey, Michael Ray Bailey, Donald Mosley, Shannon Hamilton, Kristin Rosa, Charles Singletary, Glenn Goforth, William Preston Jones, Dock Dewayne Hodge, Ronnie Bowling

        

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