Wakefield men sentenced to probation, jail in neglect case

By RICHARD JENKINS

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Bessemer - Two Wakefield men won't be able to own any pets for the next four years. That was one of the conditions Gogebic County Circuit Judge Michael Pope put on their probation during a sentencing hearing in Gogebic County Circuit Court Tuesday.

Gerard Joseph Herlache and Lawrence C. Murphy were each sentenced to four years probation - the first two months of which will be served in jail - for attempted abandonment/cruelty to 10 or more animals.

"... We've all seen the commercials on TV with the animals that are being neglected or abused. Frankly, the photos that came out of the HOPE Animal Shelter immediately upon receipt of these animals came right out of those commercials as far as showing animals that have been clearly neglected and clearly abused," Pope said during Herlache's portion of the sentencing hearing. "The court takes that seriously and it's not sufficient for the defendant to stand in front of this court and simply claim they were overwhelmed.

"As human beings, you should have enough dignity and respect for all animals to not take them into your care in the first place if you couldn't provide proper care to them."

The charges against the two stemmed from a July 25 visit the Gogebic County Sheriff's Department made to the couple's home on the 900 block of Plymouth Road in Wakefield after the department was notified of dogs barking at the residence.

The smell from the outside the house led to deputies to search the house. Inside they found close to 20 dogs and cats, which were described as malnourished and living in dirty conditions. The animals were taken to HOPE Animal Shelter. Along with the sentence, Pope ordered the two to pay $1,350 in restitution to the shelter to cover the costs of caring for the animals.

The two pleaded guilty to the charge in March as part of a plea agreement which called for two felony counts of abandoning/cruelty to 10 or more animals be dismissed Tuesday. The agreement also required at least two years of probation for each defendant.

Doug Muskett, who represented Herlache, asked Pope to limit the sentence to probation as additional punishment wasn't necessary.

"This is clearly a case of animal hoarding, and I don't know if punitive measures need to be taken further than what's already been done," Muskett said.

Rudy Perhalla, who represented Murphy, argued for a similar sentence.

Chief Assistant Prosecutor Tracie Wittla argued for a sentence within the recommended guidelines of zero to three months in county jail and probation. She noted the recommended guidelines would be much higher if animals were considered victims in the pre-sentencing process.

"It's really not excusable that these animals were treated as poorly as they were and I'm hoping, through this case, that Mr. Herlache and his co-defendant Mr. Murphy are able to make good decisions going forward so this does not happen again," Wittla said.

Herlache and Murphy each received a jail credit of 15 days for time served prior to sentencing.

They will be allowed to participate in the jail's work crew and work release programs, if eligible, while serving their jail sentences.