Dick Goddard's daughter wants woman in Portage animal abuse case charged with felonies

The daughter of legendary Cleveland meteorologist and animal advocate Dick Goddard is pushing for felony charges against a woman recently charged with misdemeanors in the deaths of 146 dogs at a Mantua Township home.

Kim Goddard has launched an online petition urging Portage County authorities to follow a state law named after her late father and pursue more serious charges against Barbara A. Wible.

"It's a horrible feeling, it was just horrible situation," said Goddard, adding, "The bottom line is Goddard's Law is there for a reason. And she needs to be charged to the fullest."

Wible, 68, is facing 50 counts of first-degree misdemeanor cruelty to companion animals in Portage County Municipal Court in Ravenna. In a separate case, a Cuyahoga County grand jury indicted Wible Wednesday on 36 counts of fifth-degree felony cruelty to animals.

Wible is scheduled for arraignment in the Portage County case on Monday and in the Cuyahoga County case on July 13. An attorney for Wible has not been listed in online court records in either case as of Friday.

What is Goddard's Law?

Goddard's Law, which the Ohio General Assembly passed and former Gov. John Kasich signed into law in 2016, allows for fifth-degree felony charges in especially egregious animal abuse cases.

Eligible cases involve "knowingly causing harm to a companion animal," said Goddard.

Goddard now lives in Florida but grew up in Aurora and makes frequent trips to Northeast Ohio. She said she not only wants to see Wible charged with fifth-degree felonies, she wants one count for each of the 146 dogs. To that end, she started a petition Thursday morning on Change.org, at https://tinyurl.com/mpwb462a. She has publicized the petition on social media and as of Friday afternoon, it had about 675 signatures.

"I'm not happy with Portage County APL," said Goddard.

The Portage APL has said it had been investigating Wible and Canine Lifeline, Inc., the dog rescue organization Wible co-founded and led, since July 2022. Half of the Portage County charges list Wible as defendant doing business as Canine Lifeline.

However, the APL said it did not have probable cause to get a search warrant until mid-June. The dogs were then found dead in a Mantua Township home Wible owns.

Meanwhile, the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office said Parma police and fire department responded for a welfare check at a home Wible also owns there in early June and found 36 neglected and malnourished dogs in cages in early June. A dozen dogs were dead at the scene and three were euthanized after they were taken to an emergency veterinary clinic. The remaining 21 dogs were taken to an animal shelter.

Portage County Prosecutor Victor Vigluicci said Thursday that his office is not currently involved in the Portage case because a 1953 state law allows humane societies, including the Portage APL, to use a private law firm to prosecute misdemeanor cases.

More: Happy ending for Wren: Dog rescued in animal cruelty case with Portage ties gets new home

Vigluicci said he would consider filing felony charges against Wible in a separate case, but he needs information from the APL concerning its investigation. He said his office is attempting to get that information.

Portage APL explains misdemeanor charges in death of 146 dogs

Portage APL Executive Director Chalan Lowry said the APL uses the firm of Holland and Muirden Attorneys at Law, which has offices in Summit and Medina counties, to prosecute cases on an as-needed basis because the firm has experience handling animal abuse cases. J. Jeffrey Holland, a partner in the firm, is prosecuting the Portage County case, according to court records.

Lowry said she believes Holland and Muirden did reach out to the prosecutor's office Thursday afternoon in response to the request for information.

Lowry said she understands Goddard's anger, including with the APL over the way the case is being handled. But beecause Wible is reportedly suffering from terminal cancer, she said, the agency decided misdemeanor charges were best because they take less time to prosecute than felony cases.

"I know people are passionate and so are we," said Lowry. "This is what we do for a job every day is to save lives. And this is horrific — one of the worst things that ever happened. But we also have to be reasonable, knowing that a terminally ill person is probably never going to do jail time. They're probably, maybe, not going to make it through what might be a long felony process and so we want to get something, some verdict, for these poor dogs.

"You know, we're not trying to say that it's not important and that they don't deserve felony charges. She deserves more than felony charges. But this is the process so that we can get something for the animals."

Lowry also said that if the APL were to charge Wible with felonies, it would likely do so under a separate Ohio statute called Nitro's Law.

Like Goddard's Law, she said, it allows for felony charges in animal abuse cases, but it's aimed specifically at animal rescue organizations and kennels. The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office said its felony case against Wible was filed under Nitro's Law, named for a dog that died while in the care of a kennel.

Goddard, who spoke emotionally about the case, said she does not accept the APL's explanation for why it is pursuing misdemeanor charges only. Goddard noted that despite Wible's reported condition, she was charged with felonies in the Cuyahoga County case.

"I think it would be in the best interest of everybody to charge this evilness," she said. "This person, unfortunately, I wish this never happened, but unfortunately it did. We need to charge her with the fullest and whatever happens then happens. At least it'll go down in the books, saying you can't get away with this Ohio. You can't get away with animal abuse. You can't let animals starve and suffer."

Portage County dog abuse case: Woman charged after 146 dogs found dead in Mantua Township indicted in Cuyahoga County

Goddard also questioned whether Wible actually is terminally ill.

Lowry said she heard about the diagnosis directly from Wible, but Lowry has not been able to confirm it. Vigluicci said he too is attempting to confirm Wible's condition, but medical privacy laws make this difficult.

Goddard said that if people help decrease the surplus pet population by getting animals spayed and neutered and adopting animals instead of supporting the trafficking of animals for profit through online sellers and "puppy mills," problems like those now seen with the criminal cases in Portage and Cuyahoga counties would be greatly diminished.

"You know, it all boils down to the way us humans as a society all across the world treat the voiceless animals," she said. "We can do better. We can do a lot better."

Reporter Jeff Saunders can be reached at jsaunders@recordpub.com.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Dick Goddard's daughter wants justice for dogs in Portage County case