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Deer assault case presents unusual issues
Duluth News Tribune
Last update: November 15, 2006 – 4:21 PM
DULUTH -- Prosecution of a case involving alleged sexual contact with a dead deer may hinge on the legal definition of the word "animal.''
Bryan James Hathaway, 20, of Superior, Wis., faces a misdemeanor charge of sexual gratification with an animal. He is accused of having sex with a dead deer he saw beside a road on Oct. 11. hump
A motion filed last week by his attorney, public defender Fredric Anderson, argued that since the deer was dead, it was not considered an animal and the charge should be dismissed.
"The statute does not prohibit one from having sex with a carcass,'' Anderson wrote.
Judge Michael Lucci heard the motion Tuesday.
Anderson argued that the statute, which falls under the heading "crimes against sexual morality,'' was meant to protect animals. That would be unnecessary in the case of a dead animal.
"If you look at the other crimes that are in this subsection, they all protect against something other than simply things we don't like or things we find disgusting,'' he said.
Other crimes in that subsection include incest, bigamy, public fornication and lewd and lascivious behavior.
Boughner said the focus of the statute was on punishing the human behavior, not protecting animals.
"It does not seem to draw a line between the living and the dead,'' he said.
Interpreting the statute to exclude dead animals would also exclude freshly killed animals, Boughner said. That, he said, could lead to people who commit such acts with animals to kill them.
Lucci said he would render a decision by Hathaway's next court appearance on Dec. 1.
The misdemeanor charge carries a maximum penalty of nine months in jail and a fine of up to $10,000. If convicted, Hathaway could serve a prison term of up to two years because of a previous conviction. In April 2005, Hathaway pleaded no contest to one felony charge of mistreatment of an animal for the shooting death of Bambrick, a 26-year-old horse, to have sex with the animal
Duluth News Tribune
Last update: November 15, 2006 – 4:21 PM
DULUTH -- Prosecution of a case involving alleged sexual contact with a dead deer may hinge on the legal definition of the word "animal.''
Bryan James Hathaway, 20, of Superior, Wis., faces a misdemeanor charge of sexual gratification with an animal. He is accused of having sex with a dead deer he saw beside a road on Oct. 11. hump
A motion filed last week by his attorney, public defender Fredric Anderson, argued that since the deer was dead, it was not considered an animal and the charge should be dismissed.
"The statute does not prohibit one from having sex with a carcass,'' Anderson wrote.
Judge Michael Lucci heard the motion Tuesday.
Anderson argued that the statute, which falls under the heading "crimes against sexual morality,'' was meant to protect animals. That would be unnecessary in the case of a dead animal.
"If you look at the other crimes that are in this subsection, they all protect against something other than simply things we don't like or things we find disgusting,'' he said.
Other crimes in that subsection include incest, bigamy, public fornication and lewd and lascivious behavior.
Boughner said the focus of the statute was on punishing the human behavior, not protecting animals.
"It does not seem to draw a line between the living and the dead,'' he said.
Interpreting the statute to exclude dead animals would also exclude freshly killed animals, Boughner said. That, he said, could lead to people who commit such acts with animals to kill them.
Lucci said he would render a decision by Hathaway's next court appearance on Dec. 1.
The misdemeanor charge carries a maximum penalty of nine months in jail and a fine of up to $10,000. If convicted, Hathaway could serve a prison term of up to two years because of a previous conviction. In April 2005, Hathaway pleaded no contest to one felony charge of mistreatment of an animal for the shooting death of Bambrick, a 26-year-old horse, to have sex with the animal
