INDIANAPOLIS — Two years after hanging and fatally stabbing a dog named Deron they had adopted from an Indianapolis shelter, the last of four Indy residents have been sentenced.
Clifford Massey received a two-year sentence on June 20, with one year suspended, after initially being charged with:
- Torturing or mutilating a vertebrate animal, level 6 felony
- Obstruction of justice
His sentence also included a year of monitored house arrest and a year of probation that can be thrown out if he finishes house arrest without any violations and completes a mental health evaluation. Massey was also ordered to pay $849 in restitution fees.
Zech Thomsen was sentenced last month on May 31 to two and a half years in prison after being charged with:
- Torturing or mutilating a vertebrate animal, level 6 felony
- Battery against a public safety official, level 6 felony
- Obstruction of justice, level 6 felony
- Resisting law enforcement, Class A misdemeanor
Thomsen will serve this additional sentence for his role in Deron’s death after concluding his 27-year sentence in the Indiana Department of Corrections for shooting and killing Vincent Clifyton, Jr. in 2022.
Online court records indicate Thomsen was previously charged with criminal confinement, domestic battery, strangulation and resisting law enforcement in 2021. He would end up serving less than a year on probation after pleading guilty to resisting law enforcement and having the other charges dismissed.
Sierra Makin was sentenced earlier this year on Jan. 18 to three years, with one year being spent in prison and one year in Marion County Community Corrections. Makin was also ordered to engage in anger management classes. She was charged with:
- Battery resulting in bodily injury to a public safety official, level 5 felony
- Obstruction of Justice, level 6 felony
- Resisting law enforcement, Class A misdemeanor
On April 5, Denita Hughes received a probation sentence of 304 days and was ordered to pay a $100 fine in exchange for pleading guilty to obstruction of justice, which is a level 6 felony.
(Left to Right: Zech Thomsen, Clifford Massey, Sierra Makin, Denita Hughes)
According to previous reports, the group adopted Deron on July 28, 2022, from Indianapolis Animal Care Services. Nine days later on Aug. 6, Indianapolis metro police officers were called around 3 p.m. to the 700 block of Bosart Avenue after receiving reports that a dog was dead after being seen hanging by its leash and being stabbed multiple times.
Court documents indicated that Thomsen reportedly hung Deron by his leash on the front porch of the residence and stabbed him as witnesses later told detectives that Makin and the others watched the dog be tortured and killed.
One other witness reportedly told police they saw Deron being stabbed while it was hanging on the porch before a trash bag was put over its head until the dog stopped moving.
Doorbell footage at the time appeared to show one of the men asking for a knife before saying he was going to “beat the brain out” of the dog.
In the video, Massey was reportedly seen torturing the dog while someone else could be heard shouting “F*** him up!”
Around 20 minutes later, Makin could be heard reportedly asking, “Why did you do that, we spend so much money on that dude.”
10 minutes after that, Massey and Thomsen can be seen bringing the dog to the trash and bringing it inside the home.
Police eventually located Deron’s body inside the trash can alongside a bloodied steak knife.
After officers responded to the home, Makin reportedly struck an officer with her fist and drew blood.
At one point during the altercation, Thomsen attempted to prevent officers from cuffing Makin, according to court documents. Makin proceeded to allegedly bite one of the responding officers as Thomsen allegedly struck another officer in the back of the head.
Deron was 2 years old and IACS described him as an “energetic, affectionate guy.”
The incident led to renewed calls from the public and lawmakers to introduce harsher punishments for animal abuse charges. Sen. J.D. Ford pushed for legislation in the form of Senate Bill 41 that would have handed longer sentences to animal abusers facing animal cruelty charges.
The bill was eventually rejected by the Corrections and Criminal Law Committee in February of last year. At the time, the committee argued that the bill, if approved, would have led to “cascading” offenses.
According to previous reports, dog rescue organizations do not typically require background checks. However, some dog rescue volunteers in Indiana have called for lawmakers to introduce a law requiring background checks for animal adoption.
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