Corrections Deputy Denies Dog Fighting Charges

Arrested jailer denies pit bulls were used for fights

Pair charged with cruelty to animals in Whitehaven

By Matthew Woo
Saturday, August 8, 2009

A corrections deputy accused of dog fighting and animal abuse denied on Friday that he fights the 14 pit bulls taken from his Whitehaven home.
Jamario Taylor, 30, and Franchesca Morgan, 36, were arrested Thursday when Memphis police officers investigated a complaint at 5254 Whitworth and found the dogs either in the house or chained in the back yard.
Taylor and Morgan were charged with a dozen counts of cruelty to animals, 14 counts of keeping an unvaccinated dog and one count of animal fighting.

"I am not a dog fighter," Taylor said Friday evening. "They want to stereotype anyone with pit bulls as a drug dealer or dog fighter."

According to a police affidavit, a dozen of the dogs appeared to be malnourished, others were chained so that they were standing in mud several inches deep, and six had what appeared to be bite wounds.

Detectives also found a dog treadmill, weight sled, mattresses that appeared to be blood-stained, and break sticks, which are used to pry fighting dogs apart.

One of the sticks was inscribed "Screw PETA," apparently a reference to the animal rights group. Four dog fighting magazines were also found.

Standing outside his house, Taylor said he raises pit bulls and enters them in dog shows. He said he has been showing dogs since 2003 and showed off several trophies and ribbons. He also had a magazine that pictured him with a prize-winning pit bull on the cover.

"I don't have vicious dogs," he said.

Taylor also denied that any of his dogs were malnourished. He said the treadmill and weight sled were used to strengthen his dogs for shows.

The blood on the mattress was from his dogs, Taylor said, explaining that on Thursday he broke up a fight between two dogs, got blood on his hands and accidentally wiped the blood on the mattress.

"(The dogs) are part of our family," Taylor said. "They live in the house and they sleep in the bed with us."

Neither Taylor nor Morgan could supply documentation that the 14 dogs had been vaccinated.

Taylor has been a jailer since 2005. He has been relieved with pay, pending an investigation.

The Shelby County Sheriff's Office will begin its own investigation to determine if any departmental policies were violated, said spokesman Steve Shular.

Taylor has had several disciplinary infractions since he joined the department for paperwork and attendance issues and not being in proper uniform when arriving for work, Shular said.

Morgan and Taylor have each posted $10,000 bond.

A police spokeswoman said she didn't know what connection the suspects had to each other.


Reporter Hank Dudding contributed to this article.

 

My thoughts on this are as follows. If his dog's were unvaccinated - yes give him the appropriate fines and citations. If he truely was fighting dogs - well he broke the law and will have to deal with that. If he was truly abusing his dogs and starving them, the same goes.

HOWEVER -

It scares me that the primary evidence at this point all seem to be tools that responsible pit bulls owners use and have. He had break sticks to help break up any accidental fights the dogs got in. He doesn't like PETA - who does? He had show dogs who had ribbons and magazine features for winning confirmation and weight pull - legitimate proof that he needed weight pull sleds and treadmills (although I feel they are great tools for casual owners to have as well, dogs LOVE a job!)

I want to know what is considered a dog fighting magazine - if they gave a title and proof that it really was related to present illegal activities that would be more credible. There are tons of publications out there on the history of the APBT, that organizations like PETA claim are "dog fighting" material that we all know are books that talk of the history of our breed. That history includes its creation, and working purpose - which when matching was legal was what the APBT was obviously used for. Just because some folks choose to fight their dogs today, does not mean everyone with literature on the history of these dogs is making that choice. So I want to know if the literature he had was present day references to illegal matches, or was a magazine on the breed's history. Those are two very different things....

 

That's the problem,their "proof" can be circumstantial at best and an outright fabrication at worst.To start with,since when is exercise equipment for dogs(APBT or other breeds)actually illegal.Actually it is beneficial for any dog.Having a breaking stick is IMHO a necessity for any APBT owner as insurance if the dogs have a accident you can safely separate them.And if that ever happens,you probably have blood on it at this point.I guess that makes you a dogfighter:rolleyes:As far as not liking PETA,since when is that a crime?Anybody that has bulldogs,hunts,fishes,eats a hamburger or swats a fly don't have any business liking PETA IMHO.I'll say it right now,I absolutly HATE PETA!It's nice to know they also want to censor what we read now.I don't know what book he had and really don't care.Since when is reading against the law.The worst thing I heard about the guy is that he's a cop,LOL But there's probably a few good ones somewhere,just don't ask me to name them.Main thing I know is he's a APBT owner that's getting his rights infringed on by PETA and HSUS.

 

yep..i saw this on the news this morming....and just shook my head and said here we go again....i live in memphis where this happened..but the news didnt say anything about his trophies or ribbons....thats why i keep my trophies and ribbons to..cause i have all the "dog fighting" equipment...lol..springpole,weight pull harness,etc....but i truely use my stuff to keep them in shape to enter alot of the classes at the shows...sad to say but if he cant "prove" that his dogs were vaccinated and he had a "yard accident" memphis is a kill shelter esp pitbulls..they will all be put down..