News

February 2, 2010

Jury set for woman accused of piercing kittens

Holly Crawford of Ross Twp. allegedly planned to sell cats online as “gothic kittens.”

By Sheena Delazio sdelazio@timesleader.com
Staff Writer
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WILKES-BARRE – A Luzerne County jury was selected Monday to hear the case of a woman accused of piercing the bodies of three stray kittens.

Holly Crawford, 35, of Dobson Road, Ross Township, will stand trial today on charges of cruelty to animals and criminal conspiracy before a jury of six men and eight women.

The jury was chosen Monday before Luzerne County Judge Tina Polachek Gartley.

Prosecutors say Crawford was charged after humane officers and state police searched Crawford’s home on Dec. 17, 2008 and seized three kittens with ear, neck and tail piercings. At least one of the kittens had a ring on its tail used to prevent blood flow, causing the tail to fall off in time.

On Monday, Crawford’s attorneys, John Pike and Robert Buttner, asked that charges be dismissed against their client because there is no evidence Crawford acted “wantonly and maliciously” and that prosecutors did not show enough evidence at a February hearing to prove Crawford treated the kittens in a way that abuses or neglects them.

“Why is it a crime to pierce a cat’s ears?” Pike asked Monday.

Luzerne County Assistant District Attorney Alexis Falvello said this case isn’t about beauty or ugliness, it’s about the tails of cats being killed so they can fall off and that the kittens cried when they were pierced.

Falvello said some of the kittens even suffered from infections because of the piercings and that Crawford admittedly didn’t take the animals to a veterinarian.

Polachek Gartley denied the motion to dismiss charges against Crawford and began jury selection Monday afternoon. In April, Crawford pleaded not guilty after waiving an arraignment through her previous attorney, Demetrius Fannick.

Deputy District Attorney David Pedri said recently that the three kittens were pierced a total of 10 times.

Kay Duffy, an attorney with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, also known as PETA, based in Washington, D.C., was present Monday and is expected to testify within the next few days.

Crawford allegedly pierced the ears and necks of the 2-month-old kittens and tried to sell them on the Internet as “gothic kittens.” In an interview with The Associated Press a year ago, Crawford said she didn’t think there was a difference between piercing a cat or a human.

“When I did it, it wasn’t with any cruel intentions,” said Crawford. “They were definitely loved, well fed, no fleas, clipped nails. And they were happy.”

Crawford said in the interview that she used surgical soup and sterile needles and that she checked the kittens throughout the day to make sure they were healing.

Similar charges against Crawford’s boyfriend, William Blansett, 37, of Sweet Valley, were withdrawn by the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office in February.

Sheena Delazio, a staff writer, may be reached at 829-7235.

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