Hearing set in cruelty case

There’s a dispute over the number of charges filed.

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — The man accused of letting dogs starve to death at High Caliber K-9 is due in municipal court today for a pretrial hearing.

Steve Croley, 37, of 1516 Coitsville-Hubbard Road, faces charges of noxious odors, exterior property violation and four counts of animal cruelty. He was arrested Oct. 22 after seven dead and 12 starving dogs were found on the Coitsville-Hubbard Road property.

When taken into custody, Croley told a representative of Animal Charity, a humane agency on South Avenue, that he could not afford to feed the animals. High Caliber K-9 offered kenneling, obedience and guard dog training.

Since the arrest, dog owners have come forward to say they paid Croley in advance.

Croley was originally arrested on 19 counts of animal cruelty but only four were filed. City Prosecutor Jay Macejko determined that Animal Charity’s two humane agents, Kyle Ziegler and Joe Borosky, illegally entered the property and, as it turned out, Borosky was not appointed by the mayor to act as a humane agent in the city.

Macejko said the four charges of animal cruelty relate to dogs Ziegler and Borosky saw before they used bolt cutters to cut a fence and enter the property. The prosecutor said had he been called, he would have obtained a search warrant.

Nikole Owen, Animal Charity chief executive officer, objected to only four charges being filed, saying Ziegler and Borosky acted within the law. She said last week that Borosky will take the mandatory 20-hour humane agent training in December.

Police who respond to animal calls that involve abuse try to contact a humane agent. Officers can pursue charges but don’t have the means to transport or shelter animals as humane agents do.

Aside from training, humane agents must be appointed by mayors for the municipalities in which they work and must be appointed by the probate court to function outside the municipalities in Mahoning County. Once certified, humane agents investigate cases of animal abuse and can pursue charges in court.

Last week, Judge Mark Belinky of Mahoning County Probate Court said he found no record of Ziegler and Borosky’s being appointed by the court, which would give them jurisdiction in the county.

Owen has said she will apply to the probate court after Borosky is trained, adding Ziegler is recognized by courts in the county, such as Sebring, Struthers and Austintown.