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Molino Woman Gets Probation For Animal Abuse (With Case Photos)
March 12, 2013
A Molino woman was sentenced Monday to the same fate as her husband on multiple animal cruelty charged for chaining malnourished pit bulls in their own filth in the family’s backyard.
Amanda Leah Oswald, 34, was sentenced by Judge Gary Bergosh to 36 months probation and 50 hours of community service at the Escambia County Animal Shelter. She is also forbidden from possessing dogs during her probation.
Last month, her husband, 30 year old John Roland Oswald, received the same sentence from Bergosh for animal cruelty and a drug charge that stemmed from marijuana plants found at his home.
Both sentences were less than recommended by prosecutors.
For more photos from the scene, click here. — WARNING: Some readers may find the photos disturbing.
“We recommended both defendants receive 11 months and 15 days in jail in addition to a lengthy probation. We felt that would be an appropriate sentence in view of the nature of the evidence,” State Attorney Bill Eddins said Monday afternoon. “Our office has and will continue to take a strong stance in animal abuse cases, and we will continue to vigorously prosecute them.”
Escambia County deputies responded to a complaint about an aggressive pit bull on September 21, 2012, at a residence in on Highway 29 near Cotton Lake Road. The dog was loose in the victim’s yard and had attacked and killed her dog. Deputies kept the pit bull contained in the yard and notified Escambia County Animal Control. But before animal control arrived, the pit bull attempted to attack two officers who then utilized a shotgun to stop the dog, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Neighbors told deputies the dog belonged to the Oswalds. When deputies attempted to contact them at a nearby home on Highway 29 across from the Camp Of the Pines, deputies and animal control located two other pit bulls in the backyard of the home.
“I first observed a very skinny brown pit bill dog tied to a large chain barking at me,” one deputy wrote in his report. “I then observed a very skinny black pit bull dog lying on its side, and it appeared to be dead…I observed the black dog lift its head and look at me though due to the dog being so skinny from lack of food, the dog could not stand up.”
Both dogs were “malnourished to the point of starvation”, according to an arrest report, with access to “old nasty water” and no food. Both dogs were tied to heavy chains and were surrounded by flies.
“I then observed the black pit bull who was still lying on his side struggle and make several attempts to stand to his feet. “Once on his feet, his legs were wobbly and looked like he was going to fall over,” the deputy said.
The deputy said in his report that he first though the black dog was covered in ants crawling all over it, but it was actually a “massive amount” of fleas. The dog also reportedly had an eye infection.
The two pit bulls were seized by animal control. Amanda Oswald also voluntarily surrendered a pit bull and three Yorkie dogs from inside the residence to Escambia County Animal Control.
John Oswald was also charged with one felony count of producing marijuana. During the animal cruelty investigation, deputies reported the discovery of four marijuana plants up to five feet tall and one plant growing in a bucket in the home’s backyard.
Oswald met with a narcotics investigator and admitted that the marijuana plants belonged to him, an arrest report states. “He admitted to having a pill problem prior to being involved in marijuana and that he had started growing marijuana for personal use,” the investigator wrote in his report.
Escambia County Code Enforcement also responded to the home and opened a separate investigation for various code violations.
For more photos from the scene, click here. — WARNING: Some readers may find the photos disturbing.
Pictured: Photos from the Molino area backyard of John and Amanda Oswald. Photos courtesy the State Attorney’s Office for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Comments
41 Responses to “Molino Woman Gets Probation For Animal Abuse (With Case Photos)”
Once again Florida has become the state everyone can point to and say “great place to visit but you don’t want to live there”. Judge Bergosh you were elected to make decisions that would benefit society, you have failed miserably I pray your constituents remember come election day.
As for John & Amanda, there’s a special place in Hell for people like you. You shall reap what you sow ten times over.
How anyone can say “God Bless” and admit that they did this to these animals I will never know…the CHRISTIAN thing to do? Take these dogs to animal control or have them come pick them up before they starve or kill someone else’s pet. Why anyone would use abortion or child abuse as justification not to care about animal abuse is also mystifying…Because there is cancer, we shouldn’t care about pneumonia? Because there is murder, we shouldn’t care about theft? Get a grip. Animal abuse is wrong and if you justify it you are NOT reading the WHOLE Bible. “A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast.”
You people have your priorties out of order. Molinomomma you said humans can defend themselves. What about infants, handicapped, elderly? There only defense is a responsible human to take care of them. Dont get me wrong, neglecting an animal is wrong. The parties responsible should be held accountable. This country aborts thousands of babies everyday but we worry about two people who dont feed a couple of dogs. What do you feed your kids? How much TV do you let them watch? What kind of video games do they play? Should you be arrested? Should you be put on probation for giving your kids too much soda? Dont burn this woman at the stake. I bet you treat your own children way worse than these dogs were treated.
And they only got probation???? How about chaining them up outside and letting them live in their own filth and starve! I am absolutely disgusted at our court system!
Mrs Oswald I’m sorry for all the bad things being said about you. I know that sometimes things just seem to get out of hand. I commend you for stating what went wrong with your husband and for standing by him regardless. A lot of people would have just given up and walked away.I had a similar incedent happen to me with the animal control. Someone let a dog off at my house that was in very bad shape. When I called to have this dog picked up I was informed that I would be charged as the owner of this animal;even tho I told them I had seen the car that dropped him off. They said that didnt matter for the dog was at my house. Go figure! I pray things get better for you soon.
Somebody needs to go check on the judges dogs to see what condition they are in, since he doesn’t think this is bad enough for a more punishing verdict!
Help the animals!
CONTEMPLATING:
“To Mr. Green, I would gladly mete out the punishment to animal abusers, just as I would to a child abuser, murderer, pedophile, or rapist. A bullet to the head would be my solution for many crimes.“
If that’s the way the Lord leads you, who am I to get in the way of your gun? You would make orphans of her children but the greater good would be accomplished. You are certain that being forbidden to keep animals, being on probation and having to work in an animal shelter where she might learn to care for animals would not be enough. Tomas Torquemada got nothing on you.
AND
“@ David Huie Green ~ There is clear evidence about the link between animal cruelty and violence against humans. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence conducted its own study in which 85.4 percent of women and 63.0 percent of children reported incidents of pet abuse after arriving at domestic violence shelters.”
You are correct that people who commit acts of violence against people often abused animals, but they specified that they were not talking about not taking care of the animals as they should, but rather the abusers intentionally tortured or killed the pets to punish or control the people who loved them. There IS a difference even if some don’t see it. The expressed desire to torture and kill people who didn’t do right, suggests kindred spirits with the domestic abusers rather than the abused humans.
David for less torture,
even in a “good cause”
I never cease to be amazed at the low class, ignorant mentality of people. I always wonder how people form such opinions. I can only assume it was the way they were raised because I would hate to assume that is just how they really are. That would be too hard to stomach. The bottom line is that these dogs were clearly neglected. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THEIR TERRIBLE TREATMENT, period. Not drugs, not excuses of taking care of my husband or children. To Mr. Green, I would gladly mete out the punishment to animal abusers, just as I would to a child abuser, murderer, pedophile, or rapist. A bullet to the head would be my solution for many crimes. It clearly would save our tax dollars, as well as prison overcrowding. Doesn’t it sound ridiculous that I would say such a thing? This is the same feeling I have when reading the ignorant, outlandish “opinions” on this forum, especially those of the person who committed the crime giving excuses for the suffering of animals. REALLY! This article is about the neglect and abuse of animals not children, so who cares about comments that have nothing to do with the article. Thankfully, the majority of comments on here feel the right way. So, I guess there is hope for humanity.
@amanda – kids or not, those dogs are still a responsibility. YOU lived at the house, YOU were just as responsible for those dogs as well. The inside dogs were apparently taken decent care of. How hard would it have been for you to toodle on out back (because you KNEW the dogs were out there) and give them a little food or water? Not that hard. You just didn’t want to and now that you are caught, you want to talk yourself out of your problem. Woman up and get over it.
@Amanda — I would not waste my time reading these post, it is people making comments and so quick to judge others that have no idea what goes on in your home or what kind of life you live all they want to do is put thie 2 cents in instead of sweeping up their own mess, you are only one person and can only do so much, I have seen you at the ball field before and I know you are a great mom. You can’t controll what your husband does and there is only so much you can do, you are right Jesus does know what went on he and God knows the truth so it don’t matter what any of these JUDGING others people say. God bless you and your family and you all are in my prayers.
What a disgusting excuse for a judgement. Wonder if they’ll be like the TN kid who was back in court before a month was out after his community service sentence. These two deserved more. especially given that they already had a history. Jesus, what a piss-poor excuse for justice and the legal system.
SHAME ON YOU JUDGE BERGOSH!
REGARDING;
“In court you don’t get to talk freely and tell your story.”
You have a right to speak in your own defense, so yes, you do get to talk freely and tell your story. Your attorney will probably advise against you doing so because what seems perfectly reasonable to you might not strike the jury as such.
Further, once you speak, the prosecution is allowed to question your character as a witness by bringing up previous convictions — if any — and anything else which would cause a jury to doubt your version of what happened.
As if that weren’t enough, some people have voices which tend to irritate jurors whereas if you keep your mouth shut, they will tend to be sympathetic to you, thinking perhaps you are innocent and only accused because someone has a grudge against you. Some will surely think to themselves, “That’s a pretty lady; she couldn’t possibly have done anything wrong.”
If you observe the thought that “silence is golden” the prosecution has to prove your guilt; you don’t do it for him or her.
David for golden women
Trying to help with the drug problem not the dogs. I have 2 children that come first in my life. My windows are boarded up since hurricane Iven. Like I said it doesn’t matter what I have to say so think what you want. God bless you..
There is no excuse for not feeding and taking care of those animals and if u cant take care of them then give them to someone that can! How can u eat watching those poor animals out there starving to death? someone should do the same thing to u and see how u like it. that is totally disgusting to do that to a poor defenseless creature! u should be ashamed of yourself and every time u close your eyes i hope u picture those poor dogs!
like father like son and u are just as bad
Amanda, you lived there but did not know the dogs where in that bad of shape have you never looked out your window or never walked out in the back yard ? that sounds pathetic cop out story, I feel sorrier for the dogs also if you lived there then its also your responsibly and the humane thing to do is to care for them .
@Amanda, you say ” I complained all the time. Before he got on drugs real bad he took very good care of his dogs. I got to a point where I got tired of trying and I just gave up. He lost sight of caring not just for the dogs for everything. I got tired of trying to help him.” but yet you said “If I would have known that the dogs were in that shape I would have stepped in and done something. I just didn’t know.” It can’t be both??? And are you not still married to him and ranted and raved on his facebook about how he was not wrong….Just saying.
I didn’t have a fighting chance in this case. All I can tell you is Jesus Christ knows I didn’t harm any animal and that’s all that matters to me. I’m guilty just for living at the address according to the law. I would have never got a fair trial just because of the media. In court you don’t get to talk freely and tell your story. The pictures that you are seeing for the first time. I am seeing for the first time as well. I have been hurting about this since it has happened. In more ways one, but you people don’t care you look one way and that’s it. The dogs were my husbands dogs he always been the one to feed and water them. If I would have known that the dogs were in that shape I would have stepped in and done something. I just didn’t know. I do know that my husband has had these dogs for 10 years and the black and white dog DUKE was 3 years old when he brought him here. At one point he had 11 dogs back there. I I I complained all the time. Before he got on drugs real bad he took very good care of his dogs. I got to a point where I got tired of trying and I just gave up. He lost sight of caring not just for the dogs for everything. I got tired of trying to help him.
What happened to stricter animal abuse laws!!! This makes my blood boil!!!
a note for” To sensitive” ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!! My only hope is that when people do this sort of thing to their pets,that somewhere down the road they will also endure the same treatment… I hope that these dogs get a chance for a better life.
@ Sensitive – Game dogs? Yes, pits were bred as catch dog for other game and larger animals. However, any person in their right mind (which you obviously aren’t) would know that these animals are not healthy. I agree that they shouldn’t be fat, but there is no muscle tone or any defintion on their poor skinny bodies except for the bones sticking out. See those large protrusions at the back end of the dog? Those are called hip bones. They should at least be covered with muscle and a little fat, but those bones obviously aren’t. That is extremely painful to a dog when bones aren’t covered by anything due to malnutrition. Yes, there have been worse situations of cruelty seen before, but there is still no excuse. I have a house pet and she most certainly isn’t fat. Believe it or not, it is possible to feed your animals without making them fat. I’d sure hate to see your animals if you think these guys are in good shape.
Also, just because there are food and water buckets doesn’t mean there was acutally any substance in them. There may have been, but from the looks of the black dog, I would be willing to bet there is NO food in that bowl. At least not consistently.
What happened to the poor dogs?
Yep. I believe it is possible to get extremely worked up over one bad thing to the point we do worse things and ignore FAR worse things.
There are people who would make orphans of children to punish their parents for animal cruelty.
There are those whose only acceptable response to animal cruelty would be intentional cruelty to the offenders. I guess they would like to be the torturers unless they think they could hire someone else who could do a better job of inflicting pain.
Punishment is one thing; torture is another. If you considered all the forms of evil in the world and rated them from worst to least bad, you should be ashamed at what you don’t worry about. You probably were careful to never learn of them, concentrating on your pit bulldogs.
That’s why people can keep straight faces while saying it’s worse now than ever before — not knowing the Bible tells of mothers who ate their children, fathers who offered them up as sacrifice, entire villages who were slaughtered because one of them showed pity to the wrong person, husbands who divorced their wives because they were old, men who sold brethren into slavery, killed people for their gardens, . . . It goes on and on just as people sell their daughters today or kill them for dishonor.
David for better people
and perspective
Lazy ass irresponsible people, I,d like to tie them up to a tree in my yard in the sun with dirty water and NO food , see how you like it.
Those plants sure are pretty. I have seen dogs in far worse shape then this. Where is the filth that was reported. I do see a food bowl and water bucket. Theses dogs look to be really old. Had someone took them to the shelter they would have been chared regardless. I had a friend with a old dog and went to have it put to sleep. He got charged with Animal Crulty. These dogs appear to be game dogs. Breed for hunting or sometimes other perposses. They’re lean dogs not fat house pets. The other dogs inside the home must have looked good. We surely didn’t get the full story on this. It would be nice to know before I cast any stones. You never know the full story only what the report said. I sure dont put my trust in an officer. They should have put a bullet in them like we did it in the good ole days. You people are no better than them with your judgement. Have a nice day.
@ David Huie Green ~ There is clear evidence about the link between animal cruelty and violence against humans. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence conducted its own study in which 85.4 percent of women and 63.0 percent of children reported incidents of pet abuse after arriving at domestic violence shelters. Intentional animal abuse is often seen in association with other serious crimes including drug offenses, gang activity, weapons violations, sexual assault and domestic violence—and can be one of the most visible parts of an entire history of aggressive or antisocial behavior. So….it would behoove us all to give animal abuse cases the seriousness they deserve if we want safer communities. Are you interested in making the community safer for humans?
Animal cruelty is increasingly viewed as a serious issue by professionals in law enforcement and mental health—as well as by the general public.
From the photos: Gosh, the chains appear to weigh more than the dogs themselves.
If they can’t take care of these animals they should not have ANY animals.
For David: I feel sorry for your opinion and strongly disagree with you. It sounds as if yo think those who stand up for animals are not standing up for humans. In fact, it’s those who could care less about animals that usually don’t care for humans.
The truth is there is no difference! Cruelty is WRONG, whether it be to an animal or human. What’s wrong IS WRONG. This was most definately wrong! These two people are charged with a crime – unfortunately, the sentence doesn’t always fit the crime. That is yet another issue regarding our legal system. I also think they should not be allowed to own any more animals due to the several counts of cruelty shown here.
Shouldn’t they have gotten @ least 300 days in jail?
Nonetheless, if every act of evil yielded prison time, we semi-perfect would all be taxed to death to house, feed, doctor, clothe and guard them all.
The proble of animal abuse is a saddening thing. I work for Escambia County AL and I travel all through the county. I have personally came upon this same situation. It was one of the most emotional experiences of my life. I cried for the animals (4 pit bulls) on chains, no water and no food for what looked like several weeks. But, I was also mad at the owners of the animals. Also what is bad is that this was a well populated area, people walked by these dogs everyday and did nothing but, had the nerve as the Humane Society was there trying to get them loaded to ask, “Can I have that dog?” It is someting I will never forget, to see these helpless animals tranquilized because they are scared and loaded up in the truck only to be put down because they are in such bad shape. Until the laws against animal cruelty are more serious, this will continue to happen. So Sad!
I cannot stand to see my baby (a dog that looks very much like these) unhappy for a minute–much less at my expense (unless it’s from a well deserved scolding–but even then!) If I was unable to take care of her I would make sure that someone would. I hope these two don’t have/never have children.
Cases like this make me so sad for the animals. They can’t help themselves and the people who owned these animals should NEVER EVER be allowed to have animals again!
I agree with every comment already posted– but David Green, in this case the animals are more important in my eyes then the abusers that ONLY got probation. I can say this, it’s a good think I don’t work of the animal shelter and would have to face this woman. I wouldn’t be physical but she would KNOW what a lowlife I see her as. I’m not a fan of Pit Bulls and never will be but no animal should be treated so cruelly.
@DavidGreen…atleast humans can defend themselves, animals don’t have a choice. Animals rely on HUMANS to take care of them & they did a piss poor job & should NEVER own animals again!!!!
MolinoMomma for stopping animal cruelity
Really, the only one to feel sorry for are the poor animals that had to suffer, these people should never own anything that breathes.
This DOES free up a cell for those who intentionally hurt humans,
even though there are those who think humans are less important.
David for proper priorities
Can’t own a dog DURING her probation?? How about NEVER be able to own another animal of any kind!!
SHAME on the judge!! Those poor animals. If you own a pet it is up to you to feed it and for the judge to just slap her hand and say Don’t do it again, its a slap in everyones face who worked this case!!!
She got off way too easy! Animal abuse should be a felony!
Seeing this makes me sick!! I think they should stick them in a room with chains around their neck, with a nasty water bowl and no food and just the room their in to go to the bathroom…no toilet. Ignorant people like this probably won’t learn their lesson from something like that though……ugh!!
Well that will teach them. NOT
I need to remember Bergosh in the next election.