A Long Beach man who pleaded guilty to an animal cruelty charge stemming from the death of one of his cats was sentenced Tuesday to two years behind bars.
Superior Court Judge Tomson T. Ong also ordered Steven Ullery, 24, not to own, possess, reside with or care for any animal for 10 years.
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles launched an investigation after Ullery and his wife brought the bodies of two cats they had adopted a month earlier back for a refund in July 2013.
Investigators learned that Ullery and his wife had taken three other dead cats — including one that died from blunt force trauma and another that had been choked to death — to the Uptown Animal Hospital between March and May 2013, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Ullery was charged last year with four felony animal cruelty charges involving the deaths of three of the cats, but jurors in his trial deadlocked 11-1 last October in favor of guilt, according to Deputy District Attorney Paul Guthrie.
Ullery subsequently pleaded guilty Dec. 10 to the four counts, but was allowed to withdraw his plea to three of the counts as long as he returned to court for sentencing and those charges were subsequently dismissed, according to the prosecutor.
Ullery’s wife was not charged.
— City News Service