Dog-fighting - 12 indicted on federal charges - East Saint Louis, IL

Wednesday, Jul 8, 2009

County: Saint Clair

Charges: Felony CTA
Disposition: Convicted

Defendants/Suspects:
» William Berry
» Derrick Courtland
» John Bacon
» Julius Jackson
» Joseph Addison
» James Milburn, III
» Darryl Madison
» Gary Payne - Alleged
» Michael Williams
» Thadius Page
» Judious Kizeart - Alleged
» Brent Cash
» Terrill Clark
» Ricky Stringfellow

Case Updates: 7 update(s) available

A. Courtney Cox, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that on July 7, 2009, William Berry, 34, of Lebanon, Ill.; Derrick Courtland, 42, of Cahokia, Ill.; and John Bacon, 36, Julius Jackson, 40, Joseph Addison, 40, all of East St. Louis, Ill., were charged in a criminal complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit unlawful activities of dog fighting.

The violation is alleged to have taken place between Nov. 18, 2008, and April 18, 2009, in St. Clair and Madison Counties of Illinois. The offense charged carries a potential maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000.

The defendants were taken into custody and made an appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in East St. Louis on July 8, 2009. Preliminary hearings have been scheduled for Aug. 5, 2009, in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis.

A criminal complaint is only a statement of a charge brought by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Every defendant has a right to be charged by an indictment returned by a grand jury. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent of all charges unless and until he is found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

In addition to the charges unsealed today in the Southern District of Illinois, related charges were also filed in separate cases arising from the same investigation in the Eastern District of Missouri, the Western District of Missouri and the Eastern District of Texas. Those indictments were also unsealed today following the arrests of defendants in those districts.

Evidence supporting this criminal complaint was gathered in an investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of Inspector General, the FBI, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Humane Society of Missouri. This dog fighting investigation is the latest in a series of major animal fighting investigations conducted throughout the country since the passage of the Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act, signed into law in May 2007, which makes it a felony to participate in the blood sport. The case is assigned to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer Hudson and Mike Thompson for prosecution.

Case Updates

A southwestern Illinois man swept up in the nation's biggest dogfighting raid has been ordered to spend two years and nine months in federal prison. A federal judge in East St. Louis also fined 34-year-old Thadius Page of Fairview Heights $40,000 during his sentencing Thursday. Page pleaded guilty last year to charges of perjury and conspiracy to commit dogfighting. Federal authorities made the raids in the summer of 2009, arresting dozens of people in several states while seizing hundreds of dogs.

Source: carmitimes.com - May 20, 2011 Update posted on Aug 1, 2011 - 7:23PM

Five men have pleaded guilty of federal charges related to their roles in a dog fighting conspiracy. The five all entered pleas last week in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis. They are: Brent Cash, 31, of Eldon, Mo.; Darryl Madison, 28, of St. Louis; Terrill Clark, 33, of Lithonia, Ga.; Thadius Page, 33, of Fairview Heights; and Michael Williams, 29, of Red Bud. All pleaded guilty of conspiring to engage in unlawful dog fighting activities. Prosecutors said the conspiracy operated from Nov. 18, 2008, to April 18, 2009, in St. Clair County. When sentenced later, the men face maximum penalties of five years in prison and fines of up to $250,000. The men were among more than two dozen people in several states charged after what was called the largest dog fighting raid in U.S. history last summer. More than 400 dogs were seized in Missouri and Illinois alone.

Source: stltoday.com - Sep 17, 2010 Update posted on Dec 3, 2010 - 5:42PM

Seven Illinois men caught during last summer's major crackdown on dogfighting have been sent to prison for at least a year. The sentences were handed down Tuesday in federal court. The men are: William Berry, 35, of Lebanon; Derrick Courtland, 43, of Cahokia; and John Bacon, 37, of Fairview Heights; Julius Jackson, 41, of East St. Louis; Joseph Addison, 41, of East St. Louis; James Milburn of Prairie du Rocher; and Ricky Stringfellow, 37, of Centreville. Their sentences vary. Berry was sentenced to one year and a day in prison. Courtland was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Bacon was sentenced to 16 months in prison. Jackson was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Addison was sentenced to 24 months in prison. Milburn was sentenced to one year and a day in prison. Stringfellow was sentenced to a year in prison. Each of the men must pay $100 and repay the Humane Society of Missouri for caring for the pit bills that were seized. Berry arranged for a Nov. 15, 2008, dogfight behind his house in the 2200 block of North 50th Street in Washington Park that was attended by about 40 people, the complaint says. Berry charged $20 a head. Addison refereed and Bacon attended, the complaint says. On April 18, 2009, Bacon, Addison, Jackson and Courtland fought their dogs at a series of fights on Lakewood Place in East St. Louis, the complaint says. The men faced six to 12 months in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, but prosecutors asked for double that, citing the men's dogfighting history. Berry sponsored fights, bred, sold and fought dogs and had his kennel located next to a daycare facility, prosecutors wrote. Courtland bred and fought dogs and sponsored and refereed fights, they wrote. He also had some of the most aggressive dogs, including one that had to be pried off a stuffed dog being used to evaluate its aggressiveness. Bacon, who had his dog's on another man's property, told undercover investigators that he pulled out a dog's tongue and killed it for “for the dog's poor fighting.” Jackson fought and bred dogs and had the most dogs seized. Addison bred and fought dogs and refereed fights and had the second most dogs seized. He offered to kill a dog owned by investigators and electrocuted one of his own losing dogs. Milburn bred and fought dogs. Stringfellow kenneled Bacon's dogs and hosted fights. Many of the men's dogs had to be euthanized, either for medical reasons or because they were deemed to aggressive to be rehabilitated. Addison, Courtland and Jackson own or are affiliated with Back Street Truez kennel.

Source: stltoday.com - Jun 3, 2010 Update posted on Jun 10, 2010 - 4:42PM

Seven southwestern Illinois men convicted in what authorities are calling one the nation's largest dogfighting ring busts ever will spend time in a federal prison. The convictions came after authorities collected more than 500 dogs in Illinois and six other states. More than a hundred dogs were euthanized after the raids. Forty-one-year-old Joseph Addison of East St. Louis got a two-year-sentence, more than any of the others. Prosecutors say the ring worked out of St. Clair and Madison County in 2008 and 2009. More than two dozen were arrested in the sting, some are still awaiting trial.

Source: mystateline.com - Jun 3, 2010 Update posted on Jun 10, 2010 - 4:25PM

The indictment of seven people accused of conspiracy to commit unlawful activities of dogfighting may signal a new round of federal charges stemming from raids last summer in Illinois, Missouri and other states. The five-page indictment, made public Friday, accuses the group of promoting, sponsoring, watching, betting on or otherwise participating in dogfights. It refers to fights in Washington Park on July 19, Sept. 4 and Nov. 1 of 2008, and in Prairie du Rocher on Nov. 1, 2008. It also cites practice fights in East St. Louis on April 19, 2009. Ages and hometowns were not provided for those indicted: Judious Kizeart, Brent Cash, Darryl Madison, Thadius Page, Terrill Clark, Gary Payne and Michael Williams. Madison is identified in the indictment as a kennel owner. All are due to appear in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis on April 4. Several of the fight locations are the same as in last summer's charges. Called the largest dogfighting raid in U.S. history, the summertime round of searches and arrests resulted in charges against more than two dozen people in several states, and the seizure of more than 400 dogs in Missouri and Illinois alone. Court documents suggest more charges are coming. Debbie Hill, the Humane Society's vice president for operations, said Friday that she had been told to expect it. Hill said the charges are being handled in batches to avoid overwhelming the court system. Prosecutors handling the dogfighting cases in St. Louis and East St. Louis could not be reached for comment Friday.

Source: stltoday.com - Mar 20, 2010 Update posted on Mar 22, 2010 - 4:08PM

Sentencing will be in March for three Illinoisans swept up in the largest dogfighting raid in U.S. history. Derrick Courtland of Cahokia, Joseph Addison of East St. Louis and James Milburn III of Prairie du Rocher (doo ROH'-sher) pleaded guilty Thursday in East St. Louis federal court to conspiring to take part in dogfighting. The three were among more than two dozen people arrested in Illinois, Missouri and several other states in a series of July raids in which hundreds of dogs were seized. Two other Illinoisans were scheduled to plead guilty Friday, with the remaining two in the seven-person Illinois indictment scheduled for trial Nov. 30.

Source: Chicago Tribune - Nov 20, 2009 Update posted on Nov 20, 2009 - 12:29PM

According to the charges, the 5 defendants organized dog fights in East St. Louis and Washington Park, charging spectators $20 apiece for admission. About 40 spectators were on hand for one fight. Some dogs came from other states, and were trained to fight. Court documents indicate that the two dog owners in one fight wagered $2,000. Special Agent Carole Schmitt of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's inspector general's office stated in court fiings that "as part of the conspiracy, the defendants and their co-conspirators did provide funding for expenses associated with the ongoing animal fighting venture, including training materials, dog food, medicine, travel expenses, and purse fees for dog fighting competitions." Addison and Jackson are identified in the charges as co-owners of Back Street Truez kennel. The charges carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine up to $250,000.

Source: bnd.com - Jul 8, 2009 Update posted on Jul 8, 2009 - 9:18PM

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