HAMILTON -- A Hamilton woman is now facing animal cruelty charges for the second time.
Elizabeth Lewis was cited and charged with animal cruelty last August.
After hearing her case, Judge Gattermeyer at Hamilton Municipal Court, found her not guilty, and returned Bruiser to her in October.
Once again. 19-year-old Lewis, is claiming she did nothing wrong.
"My dog was never starved, he always had food there for him," said Elizabeth Lewis, charged with animal cruelty for a second time, "He was fine up until probably the end of December, and then he would go through spurts where he wouldn't eat."
Police were called to her apartment in Hamilton on Monday. Once there, they called in the Butler County Dog Wardens Office, who found Bruiser lying at the bottom of the stairs, skin and bones, barely breathing.
"I arrived on the scene the dog is laying in a hallway in an apartment complex on cold concrete, the dog cannot move, absolutely cannot move at all, but the dog is still breathing," said Deputy Tonya Henson, Butler County Do Wardens Office.
At that point, Deputy Henson took pictures of Bruiser, which are extremely graphic, and show his emaciated body, barely covered with hair.
The reason for his condition according to the veterinarian was starvation.
"This is the worst I've seen and I've been doing animal control for 15 years," said Deputy Henson.
We reached out to Judge Gattermeyer, he told us it would be unethical to talk about the previous case, because he's handling the current case as well.
As for Lewis, she's hoping he's understanding for a second time.
"It was the hardest thing I've ever done was to watch him get put down, but I knew it had to be done," said Lewis.
Lewis will appear in court at the Hamilton Municipal Court on Wednesday March 6th.
Elizabeth Lewis was cited and charged with animal cruelty last August.
After hearing her case, Judge Gattermeyer at Hamilton Municipal Court, found her not guilty, and returned Bruiser to her in October.
Once again. 19-year-old Lewis, is claiming she did nothing wrong.
"My dog was never starved, he always had food there for him," said Elizabeth Lewis, charged with animal cruelty for a second time, "He was fine up until probably the end of December, and then he would go through spurts where he wouldn't eat."
Police were called to her apartment in Hamilton on Monday. Once there, they called in the Butler County Dog Wardens Office, who found Bruiser lying at the bottom of the stairs, skin and bones, barely breathing.
"I arrived on the scene the dog is laying in a hallway in an apartment complex on cold concrete, the dog cannot move, absolutely cannot move at all, but the dog is still breathing," said Deputy Tonya Henson, Butler County Do Wardens Office.
At that point, Deputy Henson took pictures of Bruiser, which are extremely graphic, and show his emaciated body, barely covered with hair.
The reason for his condition according to the veterinarian was starvation.
"This is the worst I've seen and I've been doing animal control for 15 years," said Deputy Henson.
We reached out to Judge Gattermeyer, he told us it would be unethical to talk about the previous case, because he's handling the current case as well.
As for Lewis, she's hoping he's understanding for a second time.
"It was the hardest thing I've ever done was to watch him get put down, but I knew it had to be done," said Lewis.
Lewis will appear in court at the Hamilton Municipal Court on Wednesday March 6th.
