According to a Walker County Sheriff’s Office incident report, On Friday, January 5th, 2024, Deputy Maroon was dispatched to Tharp Drive in LaFayette to meet with Walker County Animal Control in reference to a felony animal cruelty case. Deputy Maroon arrived on the scene and met with Animal Control Officer Bishop. He advised that a man called him and reported his neighbor’s dog had wandered up at his residence with a horrific cut around its neck from a cable. Deputy Maroon reported, “The witness also stated that the dog resides at the address and sees it always outside tied up. He also stated that it’s usually tangled up in its cable. The dog was at this time in the custody of Walker County Animal Control. [I] observed the animal having extremely deep laceration around its entire neck, several inches deep. The dog’s neck was also covered in fresh and dried blood.” The deputy spoke with William Thomas Tharp, 65, of LaFayette, and he stated that the dog did belong to him and he had the dog since it was a puppy. He stated that he was unaware that the wire had almost cut the animal’s neck off. Deputy Maroon reported, “When [I] walked William back to his residence, he showed me a new harness and medicated ointment that he had bought for the dog’s neck. Which then alerted me that William had prior knowledge that the animal had the injury for some time.” William relinquished ownership to Walker County Animal Control, and the dog was immediately transported to an animal hospital to be treated. William was placed under arrest for Felony aggravated animal cruelty and booked into the Walker County Jail.
LaFayette man charged with felony animal cruelty after dog found with severe neck injury in Walker County
