SC: York man guilty of ill treatment of dogs, but not dog fighting

York man guilty of ill treatment of dogs, but not dog fighting
December 3, 2015

James Rhodes was accused by police and prosecutors in January of running a dog fighting ring in York

Rhodes denied the allegations

York man accused of fighting pit bull dogs in January was found not guilty of dog fighting and owning animals for fighting by a jury Thursday after a trial this week at the Moss Justice Center, according to prosecutors and court records.

However, the jury did convict James Willie Rhodes, 28, of four felony counts of ill treatment of animals.

Rhodes was sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered not to have dogs during probation, prosecutors said.

Officers found the sick, dehydrated dogs in January outside a York home. They required immediate medical care. Some of the dogs had bite marks and broken teeth consistent with dog fighting, police said.

Rhodes, who denied all the charges and whose lawyers said previously that he was only trying to separate the dogs and that there were no spectators or gambling, was convicted of animal cruelty in 2012.

Charges against another suspect in the case remain pending, court records show. A third person was charged with obstruction but that charge was dropped to magistrate court.



By Andrew Dys

adys@heraldonline.com

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YORK

A York man accused of fighting pit bull dogs in January was found not guilty of dog fighting and owning animals for fighting by a jury Thursday after a trial this week at the Moss Justice Center, according to prosecutors and court records.

However, the jury did convict James Willie Rhodes, 28, of four felony counts of ill treatment of animals.

Rhodes was sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered not to have dogs during probation, prosecutors said.

Officers found the sick, dehydrated dogs in January outside a York home. They required immediate medical care. Some of the dogs had bite marks and broken teeth consistent with dog fighting, police said.

Rhodes, who denied all the charges and whose lawyers said previously that he was only trying to separate the dogs and that there were no spectators or gambling, was convicted of animal cruelty in 2012.

Charges against another suspect in the case remain pending, court records show. A third person was charged with obstruction but that charge was dropped to magistrate court.

Read more here: York man guilty of ill treatment of dogs, but not dog fighting | The Herald