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Case #14957 Rating: 2.0 out of 5 (27 votes)
Dog severely beaten with sledgehammer
Atlanta, GA (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Dec 2, 2008
County: Fulton
Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: Joseph Waters
Case Updates: 6 update(s) available
Murphy the dog recovers today in a Dekalb County animal hospital. Someone beat the dog with a hammer and left him for dead in Murphy Candler Park.
Robert Kennedy found the dog while walking his own in the park. He tells Channel 2 Action News that the dog was wrapped in a blanket, but not far away was a hammer with blood on the handle.
"Whoever did this to a dog is just awful," Kennedy said.
The dog did not have a collar or a microchip. So the doctors at VCA Pets are People Too, an animal hospital about a mile from the park named him Murphy for the park where he was found.
The hospital's Dr. Stephen Pope says Murphy has a fractured skull and will likely lose his left eye, but he is hopeful about his recovery. Provided Murphy is stable, he hopes to operate Wednesday.
Dekalb County Animal Control officials are trying to find out who hurt Murphy. Anyone with information is asked to call authorities.
Anyone with information regarding the attack or information about the dog's owner is asked to call DeKalb County Animal Control at 404-294-2818.
Case UpdatesA man who used a sledge hammer to beat his dog will serve 12 months in jail.
Joe Waters of Atlanta received his sentence today from a DeKalb County judge.
A jury convicted Waters of attempting to commit aggravated animal cruelty, a felony, and two misdemeanor animal cruelty charges.
Waters admitted he tried to kill the dog, a German Shepherd, because he thought it was sick. The dog survived the December 2008 beating and has since recovered from severe head and eye injuries. | Source: WSBTV - Mar 10, 2010
Update posted on Mar 19, 2010 - 1:30PM |
Joe Waters doesn't deny he smashed his dog in the head twice with a sledgehammer.
But he told a DeKalb County Superior Court jury Wednesday that he attacked his Australian shepherd, Austin, only because he feared the dog was sick.
“He was shaking and crying. At that point, I believed the right thing to do is put him out of his suffering,” Waters said during nearly an hour of testimony about the Dec. 1, 2008 attack.
It took the jury less than two hours Wednesday to agree, somewhat, with Waters' story. It found him guilty of one felony, attempt to commit aggravated animal cruelty, because he did try to kill his pet.
But jurors found him guilty of two lesser misdemeanor charges of animal cruelty instead of the two other felonies he faced.
No sentencing date has been set for Waters, who could serve prison time and pay thousands of dollars in fines. He was taken into custody after the verdict.
Neither prosecutors or Waters' attorney disputed the attack or that a Good Samaritan, Robert Kennedy, found the 9-year-old dog near death in Murphey Candler Park on the morning of Dec. 2.
The dog had a severe skull fracture and hypothermia. The dog lost an eye but has since recovered and lives with Kennedy, who has renamed it Murphy.
But instead of an ill-fated mercy killing, prosecutors argued the attack was the intentional act of a man who took out his own stress on his pet of more than six years.
Assistant District Attorney Jessica Rock told the jury that Waters, 49, hid the dog’s body in a ditch in the woods, away from a path where he could be found.
Waters also gave several different reasons for why he beat the dog, including stress from a failing marriage, lack of sleep and having stopped taking medication for thyroid problems and depression.
Even when he confessed to police, Waters never asked about the condition of his dog, Rock said.
“He is not entitled to put Murphy out of his misery when he is the one causing the misery,” Rock said.
Waters had previously rejected a plea bargain of a five-year sentence, with two to be served in prison, and a $5,000 fine that would have been directed to the Atlanta Humane Society.
The vet bills to treat Murphy, who continues to receive care, have exceeded $10,000. Kennedy has paid the bills with money from a trust fund set up following the attack. | Source: AJC.com - Mar 3, 2010
Update posted on Mar 8, 2010 - 3:03PM |
Murphy, the dog who was found beaten with a sledgehammer in a DeKalb County park early this week, is up and around.
The 9-year-old German shepherd mix was able to stand up on his own and spent most of the day Thursday out of his cage, said Stephen Pope, the veterinarian and medical director at Pets Are People Too, in Dunwoody, where Murphy is being treated.
"He's made some good progress," Pope said. "It's really been amazing."
Joseph "Joe" Waters, 48, the man that police said smashed the dog in the head with a sledgehammer, remained in the DeKalb County Jail on a felony count of animal cruelty, according to DeKalb Sheriff's spokeswoman Mikki Jones. Waters is being held under $25,000 bail.
Murphy, meanwhile, was stretching his legs and even giving staff at the Dunwoody clinic an occasional tail wag.
Murphy recovered from surgery early Thursday and began responding to people, Pope said. He first stood up on his own, then took his first steps.
He spent most of the day hanging out in the clinic office, though staff said he was placed back in his kennel to be hooked up to IV lines.
The lines are keeping the dog hydrated. With worries eased about Murphy suffering brain damage, the focus has shifted to getting him to eat, Pope said.
Because of the shock, veterinarians are worried he may have trouble keeping food down. He was not yet eating on his own early Thursday evening, but staffers at the clinic said that was to be expected.
"He is out on his own, seems to be able to see out of his good eye and is recovering nicely," Pope said.
Robert Kennedy, who was walking his own dogs in Murphy Candler Park, off Ashford Dunwoody Road, found the dog with a severe head wound Tuesday morning. A bloody sledgehammer was found near the dog, who was in shock.
DeKalb police on Thursday did not give a motive for the attack. Investigators are still looking for people who may have seen something unusual in the park Monday night or Tuesday morning.
Kennedy, who plans to keep the dog, told the clinic that he would pay for the animal's medical bills. The cost has already exceeded $3,000 and could reach $6,000.
On Thursday, with offers pouring in to help the dog, Kennedy set up a trust fund to help with the cost. Donors can make a gift at any Wachovia Bank branch, to the Murphy the Dog account, number 1010209642669. | Source: Atlanta Journal Constitution - Dec 4, 2008
Update posted on Dec 4, 2008 - 10:28PM |
The man accused of beating a dog with a sledgehammer went before a judge Thursday afternoon.
Joseph Waters was charged with animal cruelty after people found the 9-year-old shepherd mix severely injured at Murphey Candler Park in north DeKalb County.
He said the dog was poisoned and requested a blood test to prove it.
The dog's name is Austin, but doctors at the clinic where the dog was taken named the animal Murphey. The dog suffered a fractured skull, injuries to his stomach and esophagus and a damaged eye that was removed during surgery Wednesday.
Doctors said Thursday the dog is responding positively to the operation. Murphey stood and walked for a short time, doctors said.
But doctors also said they are concerned about the injuries to Murphey's stomach and esophagus, because the dog can't keep food down.
Neighbors who live near the park were shocked after hearing about the alleged attack.
"That's terrible. I mean, we live right around the corner and we walk our dog here all the time and I've never heard anything like that happening. This is a nice neighborhood. But it's sad, it's disturbing," said resident Melanie Strachan.
DeKalb police said Thursday that investigators don't have a motive.
If you'd like to help Murphey, you can donate to the "Murphey the Dog" fund at any Wachovia branch. | Source: 46 News - Dec 4, 2008
Update posted on Dec 4, 2008 - 9:37PM |
Wednesday afternoon police arrested a 48-year-old man, they said beat his own dog with a sledge hammer.
DeKalb County police arrested Joseph Waters and charged him with cruelty to animals.
It happened at Murphey Candler Park in DeKalb County.
The dog doctors have named Murphey is in stable condition after having surgery.
A man living in the area found the injured 9-year old brown and black shepherd mix in the woods, barely breathing with this sledge hammer nearby.
Dr. Stephen Pope says x-ray's show the dog has a fractured skull and a damaged eye that will have to be removed.
"It's hard to say how much neurological damage is permanent. How his recovery will be. It may be a while before he can eat again on his own, before he can walk again on his own. We don't know if he'll be at 100 percent or 90 percent," said Pope.
He's accused of beating his own dog with a sledge hammer and that has neighbors near the park disgusted.
"If somebody would do that to a dog, just imagine what they would do to a human. It's just horrible," said one man.
"That's terrible. I mean we live right around the corner and we walk our dog here all the time and I've never heard anything like that happening. This is a nice neighborhood, but it's sad, it's disturbing," said a woman.
It will take thousands of dollars to save Murphey's life and Dr. Pope hopes surgery will be the answer.
'My hope is that once we get wounds cleaned put back together and the eye removed if he lives through all that, and right now it seems pretty good, but it's a big if, then I'm hoping it will just be time in recovery at that point," said Pope.
Dr. Pope told CBS 46 News a trust fund is in the process of being set up.
If you'd like to help cover some of the medical costs you can contact Pets Are People Too Animal Hospital in Dunwoody. | Source: 46 News - Dec 3, 2008
Update posted on Dec 4, 2008 - 9:36PM |
A 48-year-old man has been charged with felony animal cruelty in the beating of a dog with a sledgehammer in a park in north DeKalb County.
County police spokeswoman Keisha Williams said Joseph Waters was charged with beating the brown and black shepherd mix, which was found Tuesday morning at Murphy Candler Park in Dunwoody with a severe head wound.
Police said the dog was in critical condition Wednesday at a veterinary clinic.
Williams said animal cruelty investigators found a short-handled sledgehammer and believe the dog was attacked at the park. | Source: Ledger-Enquirer - Dec 4, 2008
Update posted on Dec 4, 2008 - 9:35PM |
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