Palm Coast man gets 18 months in prison for shooting dog, pup gets a new home
A Palm Coast man was sentenced this week to 18 months in state prison for shooting his dog.
Fortunately, Rocky, a German shepherd mix, fully recovered and is living in a new home with a new owner.
Rocky’s former owner, Jamier Lee-Bright, pleaded no contest to felony animal cruelty and tampering with physical evidence charges. Circuit Judge Terence Perkins adjudicated him guilty.
Lee-Bright, 26, must also serve 42 months of probation once he is released from prison. He will be placed on the animal abuse registry, he cannot have any animals, and he must forfeit his firearm to the sheriff’s office. Lee-Bright is also required to complete a mental health evaluation and recommended treatment.
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The case began on April 2, 2022, when the sheriff’s office received multiple calls about gunshots followed by the sound of a dog crying in the Seminole Woods section of Palm Coast.
When deputies arrived at a house on Seaman Trail East, they found Rocky locked inside a kennel suffering from gunshot wounds.
Candace Brice, Lee-Bright's fiancée, said that Lee-Bright had taken Rocky outside after she said the dog had bitten her, although the report notes she did not suffer any injury. She said she heard a loud noise but did not know what it was. She believed Lee-Bright had shot the dog, which was a year old at the time. Other people at the house said they had not seen Rocky act aggressively in the past.
Rocky was taken to an animal hospital for treatment and was later adopted by Hayden Ore, a crime analyst in FCSO’s Real Time Crime Center, and his wife.
Rocky gets new home
The couple said Rocky has been a great addition to the family and has shown no signs of aggression.
“All the vets said he was a sweet dog and he’d make a full recovery,” Ore stated in a previous release. “They needed someone to foster him immediately when he was released from the vet following surgery, so he wouldn’t have to go to the shelter. We agreed to take him right away.”
Sheriff Rick Staly praised the outcome of the case.
“Justice has finally been served to Rocky’s shooter,” stated Staly in the release. “Lashing out against your pet is never the right answer. Thankfully Rocky is now living happily with Analyst Ore and his wife and no longer has to live in fear.”
State Attorney R.J. Larizza also made a statement in the release.
“It is miraculous that Rocky survived two gunshot wounds,” he said. “There is no doubt he suffered greatly. Rocky has a loving home and the defendant is behind bars. A fitting end to a disturbing crime."
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Florida man who shot his dog gets 18 months in prison, pup gets new home
