SACRAMENTO, CA (PSN)— A Carmichael woman was arrested Wednesday evening for animal cruelty after allegedly cutting her dog's throat and disposing of the injured animal in a trash can. The suspect, identified as 41-year-old Danielle Killian, was released by the courts on her own recognizance shortly after her arrest, according to the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office.
Booking Photo Provided by the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office
Sheriff’s North Patrol Deputies responded to an apartment complex in the 4000 block of Manzanita Avenue just before 9 p.m. on October 16, after a caller reported finding a dog in a trash can with something tied around its neck. The caller said the dog had a laceration under its throat but was still alive.
Upon arrival, deputies immediately contacted Sacramento County Animal Control, who took the injured dog for medical treatment. A second dog in Killian’s care was also taken into custody by Animal Control.
Witnesses informed deputies that the dog's owner lived in the complex, and Killian was quickly identified and detained at her apartment. Detectives learned that Killian, who lived alone with two dogs and a cat, had cut the dog's throat two days earlier because "she felt her life would be easier if she only had to care for one dog." On October 15, she placed the injured animal in a shopping bag and threw it in a garbage bin outside her apartment.
After executing a search warrant at her apartment, detectives discovered the knife believed to have been used in the incident. Killian was subsequently arrested and transported to the Sacramento County Main Jail.
The cat in Killian’s care has not been located, and detectives fear that other animals Killian may have owned in the past could have suffered similar abuse. Killian reportedly told detectives that she frequently moved, sometimes as often as once a year.
Anyone with information related to this incident or other possible cases involving Killian is urged to contact the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office at (916) 874-5115 or Sacramento Valley Crime Stoppers at (916) 443-HELP. Crime Stoppers offers cash rewards of up to $1,000 for tips leading to an arrest, and tipsters can remain anonymous.
