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Attorneys/Judges
Defense(s):
John Martin
Judge(s):
Paul Cherry, Philip Simon
CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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A man whose animal cruelty conviction led state lawmakers to pass a law making sexual relations with animals a crime has been indicted on charges of downloading obscene images and videos involving sex and animals.
Michael Bessigano, 37, of Hobart was arrested Thursday by federal authorities on a charge of transportation of obscene materials involving bestiality between February and June. U.S. Magistrate Paul Cherry also ordered Bessigano to undergo psychological evaluation to determine whether he was sane at the time of the most recent alleged offense.
The Associated Press left a telephone message seeking comment from Bessigano's defense attorney, John Martin, at his office Tuesday.
Bessigano served more than four years in state prison for a 2002 animal cruelty conviction for stealing a chicken from a farmer, having sex with the animal in a motel room, killing it and discarding the carcass. Although Bessigano had a history of alleged abuse against other animals, he could not be charged with bestiality in 2002 because there was no law against it at the time.
Bessigano was also convicted of animal cruelty in 1993 for a matter involving a dog.
Bessigano was released from prison in January, and last week's federal indictment alleges that he began using an interactive computer service to download images and video of bestiality beginning in February.
Bessigano's family members have complained of harassment from neighbors in the Hobart subdivision where he lived with his brother and mother. He was arrested June 12 on an undisclosed parole violation and held for two weeks in the Lake County Jail for the safety of himself and the community, state parole officials have said. He was released June 30.
Case Updates
A man whose animal cruelty conviction led Indiana legislators to pass a law making sexual relations with animals a crime has been sentenced to two years and nine months in federal prison for downloading images and videos involving sex and animals.
U.S. District Judge Philip Simon agreed on Tuesday to recommend that Michael Bessigano, 38, of Hobart be sent to a federal prison in Massachusetts that specializes in mental health treatment. Simon said he hopes Bessigano can end the "merry-go-round of incarceration" for bestiality crimes.
"I've been trying," Bessigano told Simon. "Nobody wants to help me."
Bessigano also faces three years of supervised release after his prison sentence, a term at the low end of federal guidelines. The judge two weeks ago threw out a plea agreement that called for Bessigano to serve two years in prison, stating that Bessigano's history did not make him eligible for a below-guidelines sentence.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bernard Van Wormer said the sentence was appropriate for Bessigano, who served time prison for killing a neighbor's dog in 1993 and was jailed again in 2001 for having sex with a chicken in a motel room and killing it.
Bessigano could not be charged with bestiality because there was no state law against it at the time, but he served more than four years in prison for an animal cruelty conviction.
The Hobart man who sexually abused and killed a chicken at a Valparaiso motel in 2001 has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Hammond.
Michael Bessigano, 37, faces a charge of using the Internet to receive images depicting bestiality. The indictment alleges Bessigano committed the crime between February and June.
Bessigano was in the Lake County Jail on Thursday. He has been jailed since July, when he was arrested and charged with a crime similar to the one alleged in the indictment.
He was slated for a jury trial on that charge until Judge James Moody last week dismissed the charge.
Bessigano served more than four years in prison for the 2002 animal cruelty conviction for having sex with a chicken, then killing the animal.
He was released from prison Jan. 29, then arrested again June 12 on allegations of a parole violation. He was released June 30, then arrested again on July 3 on the federal charge.
Michael Bessigano went back to jail on Wednesday after waiving his right to a detention hearing. Bessigano was arrested July 3 by federal authorities on a charge of transportation of obscene materials involving bestiality in the Northern District of Indiana between February and June.
John Martin, Bessigano's attorney, told U.S. Magistrate Paul Cherry his client had agreed not to contest a detention hearing.
"You're giving up your rights to a detention hearing?" Cherry asked Bessigano.
"Yes," Bessigano replied.
The 37-year-old Hobart man came to the hearing wearing oversized dark sunglasses; an orange colored issued prison shirt and blue jean cutoffs. His legs and hands were shackled.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bernard Van Wormer, who on July 9 filed a request for Bessigano to undergo a competency evaluation, agreed to withdraw it since there would be no detention hearing.
Cherry, after remanding Bessigano back to the custody of the U.S. Marshal, also set an Aug. 29 pre-trial hearing and a Sept. 8 jury trial.
Bessigano previously served more than four years in state prison for a 2002 animal cruelty conviction for stealing a chicken from a farmer, having sex with the animal, killing it and discarding the carcass.
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