Billy Stewart, convicted in June of four felony counts of animal cruelty for torturing animals in the kill room at MAS has been sentenced by judge Paula Skahan. WREG reports:
Count 1- 2 years of which he must serve at least at 30%
Count 2- 2 years of which he must serve at least30% consecutively
Count 3- 2 years of which he must serve at least 30% concurrently
Count 4- 11 months 29 days of which he must serve at least concurrently
Count 5- 2 years of which he must serve at least at 30% concurrentlyNo probation was allowed.
Stewart’s defense is appealing.
If I interpret the sentencing correctly, Stewart must serve at least 438 days in jail. It’s not enough, of course. It does nothing to take away the terror he inflicted on defenseless animals before killing them – animals the city of Memphis, Stewart’s greatest defender, paid him to protect. But in this broken shelter system of ours where we see so much violence against dogs and cats by those charged with their care for which there is no accountability, it’s something.
The Commercial Appeal is reporting that Stewart will remain free on bond, pending his appeal.
The other two MAS workers caught in the same undercover operation were Archie Elliott and Frank Lightfoot. In October 2012, they pleaded guilty to six counts of aggravated animal cruelty and requested diversion so that they would not have to serve time in prison and could have their records wiped clean in future. The judge denied this request, sentencing Mr. Elliott to 2 years and Mr. Lightfoot to 20 days in prison on the weekends.