Va. dog abuse suspect gets suspended sentence, fine
An Accomack County man was fined and given a suspended sentence Monday in connection with neglect of a dog who later died.
Jose Berlanga was fined, sentenced to 60 days in jail — with all time suspended — and given 24 hours community service in the animal cruelty case.
RELATED Photo of dead dog in Facebook post leads to arrest
Outside the courthouse Monday morning, nearly 20 animal rights advocates protested the case.
"We're here today to reach out to our representatives here on the Eastern Shore, and throughout the United States, to make changes in the lives of all dogs, not just the Shore dogs," said Shawn Coyte, of Shore Paws for a Better Life.
Members of the group held signs with photographs of abused and neglected dogs they say groups have rescued on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.
One couple, Jim and Diane Bolten of Horntown, traveled more than a half hour to attend the rally, bringing with them their pet, Jake, who they said is a rescue dog.
Berlanga, 21 of Parksley, was charged with one count of animal cruelty and one count of failure to provide proper shelter in connection with the death in January of a dog belonging to him.
General District Judge Gordon Vincent found him guilty of both counts and, in addition to the community service and suspended jail time, imposed a fine of $650, with $500 suspended, on the animal cruelty charge and a fine of $100 on the charge of failure to provide proper shelter.
Berlanga's brother, Luis Berlanga, 23, of the same address, had been charged with failure to provide clean shelter and adequate food to another dog, but Vincent dismissed those charges.
Berlanga's father, mother and another relative all testified at the hearing, saying Jose Berlanga took care of his dog.
Deputy Levi Higgins of the Accomack County Sheriff's Office testified he went to a home on Hernandez Drive in Parksley to investigate a report of a deceased dog after he was tagged on Facebook the previous day about a photograph that had been posted of what appeared to be a dead dog.
In addition to what appeared to be a recently dug grave, he found two more dogs on the property — one appeared to him to be healthy and another one was older and appeared to be in poor health, he said.
Numerous photographs Higgins took at the residence, including of a doghouse and kennel, as well as the burial site, were submitted as evidence by Accomack County Commonwealth Attorney Spencer Morgan.
Some of the photographs showed piles of vomit both inside and outside a doghouse, according to testimony.
Higgins first spoke to Luis Berlanga, who released his dog — the one Higgins said appeared older and in poor health — to the deputy, Higgins said.
"It did not have food available to it" and the water in its dish appeared to be frozen, he said.
The other, healthy-appearing dog belonged to Berlanga's father, according to testimony.
Luis Berlanga told Higgins where his brother was employed and Higgins afterward went to his workplace, where Jose Berlanga agreed to talk to him, waiving his Miranda rights.
Jose Berlanga told Higgins he was the person who posted the photograph of his dead dog on Facebook and that he was upset when he did so.
Berlanga said the dog had been fed tamales before it died because he didn't have any regular dog food at the time, Higgins testified.
Berlanga testified he discovered his dog had died after he returned from work and that he buried it.
Higgins said the doghouse where the dog was had about half its floor chewed away.
Morgan asked Berlanga about a Facebook post where he wrote, "I have dogs the way I want them. That's why they're killers."
Berlanga said he raised his dogs to be aggressive, and his brother testified that Jose Berlanga "would always take care of his dog," but said the family's dogs are guard dogs — "They are there to protect the house."
Jose Berlanga did not fight the dog that died, his brother said.
Morgan said Berlanga "clearly at the time the dog died was upset, but one wonders whether it was for the right reasons," noting the defendant had trained the dog to be aggressive.
Morgan said the amount of vomit shown in the photographs makes it "arguable whether the dog was checked on."
Defense attorney Thomas Dix, who represented Jose Berlanga, noted that his client cooperated with the officer.
"This is not a situation where the dog was just chained to a tree ... We have a dog that died," but cannot point to any particular cause, Dix said, adding, "The dog was checked on daily — twice daily."
Berlanga's mother testified the dog was fed tamales with chicken filling soon before it died, but that they typically fed it dry dog food.