Supreme Court will hear Girard animal cruelty case

Staff report

COLUMBUS

The Ohio Supreme Court will hear an appeal in a case of a Girard man accused of cruelty to animals.

The city of Girard appealed a ruling by the 11th District Court of Appeals in Warren, which overturned the conviction of John A. Giordano and ruled it unconstitutional to pursue further proceedings against him.

Police arrested Giordano, 52, of North St. Clair Street, in February 2016 after a video surfaced in which he appeared to beat a dog outside his home in Girard.

The police report said Giordano kneed the dog and hit it with a closed fist.

The video ignited outrage on social media and prompted a small group of animal-rights activists to protest at Giordano’s court appearances.

Judge Jeffrey Adler of Girard Municipal Court found Giordano guilty in June 2016 after Giordano pleaded no contest to the charge. Giordano received a year’s probation and had to forfeit his dog, a Rottweiler named Hazard.

But a ruling issued by the 11th District Court of Appeals last year determined Judge Adler did not obtain an explanation of circumstances from the prosecutor before finding Giordano guilty.

Read more about the case in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.