Sacred Vision Animal Sanctuary's Owner's Sentence Leaves Animals at Risk, Shows Critical Need to Strengthen Law, Says Group
For Immediate Release:
April 17, 2012
Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382
Myrtle Beach, S.C. -- Elizabeth Owen, who systemically and fatally neglected cats at the now-defunct Sacred Vision Animal Sanctuary (SVAS) outside Myrtle Beach, was convicted of violating Horry County's animal-care ordinance this morning before Magistrate Margie Bellamy Livingston in Myrtle Beach. The conviction follows PETA's investigation of SVAS, which led to the seizure of Owen's approximately 240 cats and one dog. Owen was fined $500 and sentenced to 30 days in jail, both of which were suspended. In part because state laws fail to address the cruelty of hoarding, the court did not limit Owen's possession of animals nor did it order that she be psychologically evaluated—common and vital elements of sentencing in animal-hoarding cases.
"Owen has been held accountable for the misery and suffering that she caused hundreds of cats," says PETA Director of Cruelty Investigations Martin Mersereau. "The sad part is that Owen can continue to acquire and possess animals, and that leaves them at risk of neglect, unnecessary suffering, and a bad death."
PETA's investigator documented that Owen knowingly deprived suffering cats of desperately needed veterinary care—even refusing offers of free emergency attention for dying cats. Dozens of the cats who were then seized were suffering from painful conditions, including anal maggots, herpes, tumors, seizures, abdominal abscesses, severe gum disease, and more. Nearly half had to be euthanized because of the severity of their conditions.
Last year, Horry County officials failed to ensure the welfare of 30 cats and a dog they returned to Owen. She evidently left the state—which her bond prohibited her from doing, Solicitor Greg Hembree's office said—with those animals.
For more information, please visit PETA.org.