The burden of proof still lies with the State as to whether an elderly Somerville resident acted with depraved indifference in the treatment of the animals that at one time crowded into her home.
The State seized 66 dogs, a handful of cats and one bird from the home of Fern Clark in Somerville on Jan. 19, 2008.
Following the third day of testimony in a May 1 bench trial, Superior Court Justice Andrew Horton made no decisions regarding the fate of Clark, 79, who faces five felony charges and 16 misdemeanor charges for cruelty to animals. Attorneys may make their closing arguments either later this month or at some point in June, after which Horton will make a decision.
“It’s doubtful the state has proved depraved indifference,” Horton said of the felony counts, following many hours of testimony.
Without pinning himself down to a definite decision, Horton said he could see acquitting Clark of the felony charges. However, he denied a motion by defense attorney Andrews Campbell to acquit his client of the misdemeanor charges. Offering his opinion, he said the stand-alone evidence provided thus far by the State would support a conviction for the misdemeanor charges.
Defense attorney Campbell and prosecuting attorney Andrew Wright spent the entire Friday session in final testimony, fumbling with the line bordering care and neglect. They examined and cross-examined several witnesses throughout the day, many of whom were brought to the stand by Campbell.
Dr. Christine Fraser, a veterinarian who works for the state Animal Welfare Program in the Maine Dept. of Agriculture, said the animals seized from Clark’s residence were in critical condition.
“Overall, every dog had some sort of issue,” she said.
Fraser mentioned dogs having dental disease and eye problems, including a dog with a ruptured eye. She said 40 out of 66 dogs had internal parasites. All of the 66 dogs had external parasites including severe flea infestations and many had severe flea allergy dermatitis as a result. Some of the animals were euthanized due to the severity of their conditions, according to Fraser.
“These animals were not getting hospice care,” Fraser said.
In response to questions posed to her by the defense, Fraser described the inside of Clark’s home as smelling strongly of ammonia. She said she saw feces and did not see any working ventilation.
There was some discussion between Fraser and Campbell as to the qualities of feces. Campbell suggested that old feces are essentially dirt and implied that the dried substance was harmless, while Fraser contested by saying feces harbors viruses.
The cages, which were made of wood, Fraser continued, were not acceptable, as they could not be adequately decontaminated.
Asked to the stand by the defense, Thomas Eddy, a retired inspector for the Animal Welfare Dept., countered Fraser’s statement regarding wood cages. Eddy once granted Clark a license for her to use her home as a breeding kennel. Documents indicated that license expired in 2005.
After that license expired, she obtained a regular kennel license from the town of Somerville for 2006-2007.
Eddy said he did not have a problem with Clark’s wood cages at the time, several years ago. At that time, Clark had between 50 and 60 animals in her kennel, it was revealed during court proceedings.
Family members and other witnesses in Clark’s defense also contested Fraser’s observation that the water bowls she saw were dirty and had algae growth in them.
Some of the witnesses speaking in Clark’s defense said they had helped Clark with the operations of her home kennel in past years by cleaning and feeding the animals.
David Clark also said he helped to clean and he fed the dogs under his mother’s care. He said his mother named all of the animals.
“She treated them nice,” he said.
Mathew Clark said he doesn’t feel the State treated his mother fairly. During the time of the seizure, he said his home and property had been searched without his permission. His own dog, Baldy, was taken in the Jan. 19 seizure and he said he didn’t get the dog back.
Some of the dogs Mathew mentioned were named Idiot, Taffy, Tonya, Little Andy and Taco.
“That’s Baby Dutchess,” he said, pointing to a photograph held in front of him by defense attorney Campbell. “She lived on my mother’s bed.”
Mathew said he didn’t have time to finish cleaning before State department personnel and law enforcement entered the home.
“I’ve had an awful hard time keeping my mouth shut,” said Fern Clark as she approached the stand.
Clark didn’t have to be asked twice by her attorney and said she was ready to speak her mind. After Campbell asked his client how much of her life involved animals, Clark said she has been involved with animals since the day she could walk. Scanning a large book of photos, she identified all of the dogs by name. Most of the dogs, she said, were very old.
Clark took in dogs and tried to care for them, Campbell said. He explained how she tried to ease the animals into death, rather than euthanizing them right away. In a separate interview, Campbell said his client suffers from a compulsive disorder of animal hoarding, as described by a psychologist from Rockland, Dr. Paul Sobchuck, who testified earlier.
“It’s very easy to pick on an 80-year-old woman,” Campbell added, referring to the State. “But why don’t they pick on cock fighting or pit bull fighting?”
Clark has a disorder shared by other humans of loving animals too much to kill them, Campbell said.
“I don’t believe in killing dogs,” Clark said, adding the only exception would be if a veterinarian suggested doing so.
By admission through her own testimony, Clark tried to care for the animals in her house. She said the time spanning 2006-2007 was the worst for fleas. She bought collars, powder and sprays to knock the fleas out.
“I did my best to control the fleas and they still came back,” she said.
Clipping the nails of all her dogs was also a challenge, as implied by her description. Clark said it would require two people to do the job and recalled how she and another person clipped the nails of 22 dogs in one night.
Clark said she didn’t know the extent of tooth disease in the mouths of her dogs. She mentioned, however, one dog with tooth trouble and solved the problem by removing the dog’s teeth by herself. Clark said the dog then lived to the age of 18.
“I would never hurt an animal,” Clark said toward the end of her testimony. “The only animal I would hurt would be a person.”
Clark said she had help when she needed it and provided warm shelter, food and care for the animals in her home.
After attorneys Campbell and Wright give closing statements, Horton said he would review the exhibits, his notes and other material and make a decision on the matter.
