60 dogs housed in unlicensed kennel
El Mirage, CA (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Feb 28, 2006
County: San Bernardino
Charges: Misdemeanor
Disposition: Alleged
Case Images: 1 files available
Alleged:
» Cynthia Lee Bemis
» Adult
Case Updates: 4 update(s) available
It has only been two weeks since Cheri Horton's new neighbors moved in, but already the mother of three small children is ready for them to leave. The problems involves at least 60 dogs that are being kept in kennels behind the neighbors' home. Horton's neighbors, Cindy Bemis and an unidentified man, claim to be operating a rescue kennel for abandoned dogs. Yet, according to Horton and others, the dogs appear to be unhealthy and some of them are allowed to run loose. "There are at least 25 dogs running loose," Horton said. "I can't let my kids go outside because I'm afraid of what the dogs will do."
Horton said the loose dogs, some of which appear to have mange, have been fighting with her own dogs and hanging around her property. "They (the dogs) just keep coming back. My front porch and back door are covered in dogs every day. Sometimes they try to get in my house and car."
County Animal Control has been to Bemis' home and issued a notice of violation, according to spokeswoman Jennifer Pennell. "The amount of animals a person is allowed to have depends on the size of the property," Pennell said. "In most unincorporated areas, owners are allowed four animals, though the more acreage they have means more animals." Horton and her neighbors are renting property on a 10-acre lot, which consists of four homes set about 2 /2 acres apart.
According to the county Preventative Veterinary Services, Bemis does not have a permit to operate a kennel in San Bernardino County. A representative from the county said Bemis inquired about getting a permit and information was mailed to her.
Pennell said animal control's investigation into the case is ongoing. Bemis declined to comment.
Case Updates| Kern County Animal Control officers, backed by sheriff's deputies, raided Cindy Bemis' property on East Trotter Avenue southeast of Mojave Tuesday in response to alleged animal abuse. They impounded two cats and nine dogs, said Animal Control Chief Denise Haynes. For more on this new case, click here. | Source: Trading Markets - March 6, 2008
Update posted on Mar 9, 2008 - 12:51PM |
Cindy Bemis will appear in court for a pre-trial conference on May 22, 2007 at 8:30 a.m. in San Bernardino Superior Court at the Victorville Courthouse.
According to court records, Bemis faces multiple animal-related charges stemming from March 2006, when San Bernardino County officials seized 15 animals, nine of which had to be put down.
In April 2006, more than 100 dogs were seized from Bemis in Arcadia, due to poor health. The dogs were sent to a private shelter in Los Angeles County.
In January 2003, Bemis' Mojave shelter burned down, killing 46 dogs and 10 cats. Kern County authorities reportedly seized 6 dogs from Bemis in the summer of 2003. No criminal charges were filed as a result of those incidents.
On May 3, 2007, Kern County officers searched Bemis' property in Mojave, where they allegedly found 170 dogs. The case will be forwarded to the District Attorney's office for possible criminal charges.
According to animal controll officers, Bemis has been moving between San Bernardino, Los Angeles, and Kern county for years, trying to find a place for so many dogs. | Source: San Bernardino County Court Case #MVI050452
Update posted on May 7, 2007 - 6:54PM |
Cindy Bemis and Vince Rhodes have had up to 200 dogs, many plagued with mange, on their property where they live in their van.
They recently took their dogs to San Bernadino, which has strict shelter guidelines, and were kicked out.
Then 101 dogs were sent to a private kennel in Los Angeles County, where they were confiscated due to poor health.
They are back in Bakersfield, and Animal Control said they need to get rid of shelter regulation loopholes in order to deal with them.
The county wants to change what designates a legitimate shelter in the county, so they have more power to shut some questionable shelters down, like Bemis and Rhodes'.
Bemis and Rhodes have run what they call a rescue and adoption shelter near Mojave.
Rhodes said they love the dogs and they aren't giving them up.
"They ain't touching my dogs," he said. "Put me in jail."
Over the years, Animal Control has received numerous complaints that the dogs were roaming free or had no food or water.
A few years ago, a fire burned the main house, killing 40 dogs.
Denise Haynes said Bemis has been cited numerous times over the years, and each time an officer has returned and Bemis has complied, so the county could take no further action.
They said despite the rampant mange, the dogs are not in danger of death.
Rhodes said they adopt a lot of dogs out and they try to cure the mange, and he said they aren't going anywhere.
Code compliance has also cited Bemis for not having a main building, and said she has hired a contractor to start the process of putting a mobile home on the property.
In the meantime, it could be several months before the Animal Control Committee has the new shelter definitions worked out, then it needs to be approved by the Board of Supervisors. | Source: Turnto23 - April 26, 2006
Update posted on Apr 28, 2006 - 4:18PM |
Officials in three counties now are trying to keep animals away from notorious rescuer Cindy Bemis.
In the latest development, Kern County regulators were mulling misdemeanor charges and/or abatement orders against Bemis on Friday after checking out about 60 dogs she had in Mojave, said animal control chief Denise Haynes.
Haynes said animal control and code compliance workers found poor living conditions and inadequate food there for the canines.
No animals were about to die, she said, so the county couldn't seize them.
But Haynes said her division is considering submitting misdemeanor charges to the District Attorney's office for prosecution. Those charges would involve failure to give animals proper food, unsanitary conditions and creating a public nuisance, she said.
At the same time, Haynes said, code compliance officers are assessing whether to ask the Board of Supervisors to order the property "abated" -- which could involve the animals being seized, Haynes said.
Code compliance could also forward a case of operating a shelter without a license to prosecutors, she said.
Bemis has tangled with animal control officers for years, especially after her Mojave shelter burned down in January 2003, killing at least 46 dogs and 10 cats.
The fire prompted county Supervisor Don Maben to push for a kennel ordinance in the county, but the effort failed.
In the summer of 2003, Kern County then seized six of Bemis' dogs, citing mange. A county hearing officer gave the animals back to Bemis, saying the county didn't have enough information to support seizure of the dogs.
Bemis claimed the county was harassing her and violating her civil rights.
Since then, the county has maintained a constant watch of Bemis, but has been hesitant to take action since Bemis has narrowly stayed on the right side of the law, Haynes said.
Tuesday, officials in Los Angeles County seized more than 100 animals that Bemis had in Arcadia, Haynes said.
And in San Bernardino County, Haynes said, officials impounded two Bemis animals in the last week and one had to be euthanized. Workers there are trying to catch a third animal of Bemis', she said.
Earlier this month, San Bernardino regulators seized 15 Bemis animals, nine of which were put down. Six are being held for "evidence purposes," Haynes said.
"Bemis is an issue in all three counties," Haynes said. "All of us are very interested in stopping her ability to have animals." | Source: The Bakersfield Californian - Apr 21 2006
Update posted on Apr 24, 2006 - 7:41PM |
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