LYNCHBURG, Va. (WDBJ) – A Lynchburg man has been sentenced after being convicted in the death of a dog, according to Lynchburg Commonwealth’s Attorney Bethany Harrison.
September 18, 2024, Jacob Clark Williams was convicted of the felony offense of animal cruelty resulting in death, then sentenced in Lynchburg Circuit Court to six months supervised probation, with two years of prison time suspended.
August 1, 2023, Lynchburg Police Department Animal Control officers responded to a report on Taylor Street of an animal bite and potential animal cruelty, said Harrison. Officers found a dead dog tied to the porch of a home; the dog had been stabbed.
Witnesses told officers the dog, named Lightning, had bitten a woman who was walking her dogs, and that a man later appeared and attacked Lightning while the dog was tied to the porch railing.
Harrison said officers found the woman, who said after the alleged bite by Lightning, she had told her then-boyfriend, Williams, about the incident. Officers then spoke to Williams, who said he returned to the area of the dog bite to try to get his girlfriend’s phone, which had been lost during the incident. He said Lightning bit him as he went to retrieve the phone, and stabbed the dog in response.
Upon further questioning from Animal Control, Williams admitted he lied, and that Lightning had merely put his paws up on the railing of the house.
At trial, Harrison said, Williams testified Lightning was sleeping and was still tied up to the porch as Williams approached the home and stabbed the dog in the neck area, feeling intimidated, then stabbed Lightning several more times to “put it down.”
According to the testimony of the Commonwealth’s veterinary expert, the stab wound to the neck was not fatal, but Lightning had four to five stab wounds in total, with two deep stab wounds to the side and chest area being lethal.
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