By Taylor Boyd
Betty Sue Haynes pleaded guilty last week to two counts of cruelty to animals, Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Andrew Hynes said.
The Patrick County Sheriff’s Office received citizen complaints about animals at Haynes’ home in June.
“It was an animal cruelty case. We took a bunch of dogs out of her house that she ran a sort of rescue for. They were in pretty rough condition and in need of veterinary care, and many of the cages she put them in, you couldn’t even open let alone get in there and see the dogs,” Assistant Patrick County Commonwealth’s Attorney Andrew Hynes said.
He said all but four dogs were rehomed at the time, and the remaining four were removed following the court hearing.
“She contested that she was treating them poorly, but the reality was she just couldn’t provide the care they needed. It wasn’t in any way like a rescue. It was just a place where she had a bunch of dogs in a barn,” he said.
Hynes said the case appeared to be an animal-hoarding situation and noted Haynes had previously faced animal cruelty charges more than 10 years ago.
“We secured a court order that she was not allowed to have pets without issuing the court for a minimum of one year,” he said.
Haynes was fined $500, or $250 per count.
“It was a pretty lenient sentence, but we were hindered by what had occurred at the scene,” Hynes said.
After the hearing, Haynes said she was unaware of rules regarding legal representation.
“I was told by the judge that I would not be able to ask for a court-appointed lawyer because my charges did not carry the possibility of jail time,” she said.
She also said she was unable to present veterinary records and alleged a representative from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) gave false testimony.
“The judge stated that because one of my dogs was ‘hurt,’ I had to surrender my three personal pets. … I was ordered to pay maximum fines, attend counseling, and am barred from pet ownership for one year,” Haynes said, adding that she does not plan to continue animal rescue efforts.
“I want to be clear: I fully intend on never getting back into rescue. I absolutely mean it. I am going to focus on my life for one. I have a lot of healing to do,” she said in a statement.
