Photos from Natural Bridge Zoo warrant execution: Trial Day Three

This story is part of our ongoing coverage of The Natural Bridge Zoo's legal problems starting with a Dec. 6, 2023 search warrant. To catch up from the beginning, click here.

LEXINGTON – The authority to execute the search warrant, pictures of the bird-tortoise-monkey-urine building at the zoo, and a motion from PETA emerged on day three of the Natural Bridge Zoo Circuit Court trial.

The vet’s bird, tortoise, monkey, urine building walkthrough

Attorney Michelle Welch Rockbridge County's case continued with testimony from veterinarians on the scene.

Veterinarian Ernesto Dominguez once again testified to the conditions of the so-called tortoise-bird-monkey building. When he first stepped inside, an “overwhelming” smell of ammonia and urine was the first thing he noticed.

Entering the first room, Dominguez finds three tortoises. Feces are scattered across the ground, enough for him to know it is not just one night's worth of waste and waste-spreading tortoise pacing. The three tortoises have nasal discharge. One is visibly dehydrated and lethargic. The heat mat is set to 104 degrees, high enough to burn the inhabitants.

“The whole enclosure is filthy,” he testified.

He passes a kookaburra. No food in the cage. No enrichment. Not enough space.

The smell is still there. He thinks about when miners would place a canary in their tunnels, waiting to see if the fumes would kill the bird. He knows that if the smell can affect his body, it would affect the small bird’s.

In the next room, two cages are stacked on top of each other. The cage is in three parts on top – one for two Amazon parrots, one for two cockatoos, and one for a macaw. The macaw is missing feathers, but Dominguez is not sure if this is due to bad health from the environment or diet, because the bird is plucking itself as a makeshift form of entertainment, or something else entirely. A claw is missing.

Below the birds are seven more tortoises, the floor lined with feces, bird droppings, food, all mixed together. In the same room, three more tortoises have puddles of urine covering what appears to be a third of their entire exhibit.

He continues, finding a sulphur crusted cockatoo. They’ve been fed sunflower seeds, which don’t have all the nutrients the bird needs. The only place the bird has anything to do is on the dirty cage floor, a place the bird would not feel safe due to the genetic fear of predators that could descend from the sky.

Finally, Dominguez walks into the last room. There are three cages, each with four capuchin monkeys. Sharp wire is exposed, accessible to the monkeys. One monkey is avoiding using one of her arms. Several are missing fur across their chest and have abrasions on their feet. They fight over food scraps. They fight over an access tunnel that leads to a confined area outside of the cage. One of the water dispensers isn’t covered, and it is contaminated.

None of the enclosures have access to sunlight or a UV light.

The ammonia smell is joined by feces. Dominguez recommends seizure for all of these animals. The animals are taken outside, given an IV with fluids to combat the effects of the fumes and lack of nutrition, and brought to the zoo's gift shop.

Testimony continued, presenting similar information to the General District court hearings in January.

The search warrant’s authority questioned once again

Before the jury came in, the morning started with a phone call with Rob Cerullo, Commonwealth’s Attorney for Powhatan County.

Natural Bridge Zoo’s defense team wanted Cerullo’s testimony in the case. Defense attorney Erin Harrigan explained she did not believe the Powhatan Sheriff’s Office was a party to the case, so he could be called to testify.

According to Welch, the warrant was executed in Rockbridge County under the authority of the Virginia State Police with a mutual aid agreement between the Office of the Attorney General and the Powhatan Sheriff’s Office. The warrant application was signed by Sgt. Christine Bozcar of the Powhatan’s Sheriff’s Office, but the investigation is not rooted in Powhatan County.

So it’s with the attorney general’s office? Not quite. According to the defense and Welch, the Animal Fighting Task Force is not part of the office of the Attorney General. Instead, the organization is a place for experts to gather and assist in local animal fighting and abuse cases. Because the organization is a nonprofit, it would not have the legal authority to execute a warrant.

“That is not a law enforcement task force,” said defense attorney Erin Harrigan. “That is a nonprofit entity with a lot of individual volunteers.” She continued, saying Bozcar “had no law enforcement authority when she came into Rockbridge County” and the “entire operation took place not at all with the approval of the Rockbridge Sheriff.”

Welch stated that she was representing Rockbridge County in the case. Welch called the attempt to get Cerullo's testimony "a fishing expedition” for the evidence in the criminal investigations. She citing the ongoing criminal task force investigation and Drug Enforcement Administration investigation.

Judge Christopher Russell ruled the warrant was not at issue for the circuit court trial in a preliminary hearing earlier this month. After arguments on Wednesday, Russell said this might not be the case if criminal charges were to emerge from the same warrant. He continued to say, “That might be an unnecessary comment” because of its relevance to this hearing, but the statement has implications for future cases dealing with the zoo, including a potential defense appeal of the circuit court trial if the circuit court trial finds against them.

This does not mean Cerullo will not testify.

Russell told Cerullo, “That sergeant has no authority” to do investigations in Rockbridge County. “Our officers don’t come into Powhatan and do that,” Russel told Cerullo, continuing to say parties in Rockbridge County took offense to the cross-district warrant execution.

Russell ordered Cerullo provide a list of all Powhatan investigations ongoing in Rockbridge County by 4 p.m. Whether or not Cerullo will appear before the court on Thursday morning remains to be seen.

The jury was not present for this or the following PETA discussion.

PETA does not have to present documents

The defense also requested records from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

An attorney representing the organization requested a hearing to determine if the records should be turned over. The defense argued the records should be accessible because PETA filed the initial complaint with the Animal Fighting Task Force.

PETA’s attorney rejected the argument, explaining the complaint was filed about the zoo’s treatment of Asha the elephant. Asha was moved before the search warrant, meaning the case might have begun with PETA’s complaint, but it extended beyond it.

Questions from defense attorney Aaron Cook suggested the Animal Fighting Task Force accepts donations as a nonprofit and raised the possibility PETA was one of these donors. Evidence of this was not presented.

Russell sided with PETA, meaning they would not be required to turn over any documents in the case.

Lyra Bordelon (she/her) is the public transparency and justice reporter at The News Leader. Do you have a story tip or feedback? It’s welcome through email to lbordelon@gannett.com. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com.

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This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Photos from inside Natural Bridge Zoo warrant execution: Day Three