Billy Dean Jones charged with beating/murder of Jack Russell Terrier, Kay
"Someone had slit her throat, and beat her with a baseball bat." These are
the words used to describe the murder of Kay, a young Jack Russell Terrier.
This crime is alleged to have been committed by a young man named Billy Dean
Jones. The full story follows the signature below.
This is a photo of Billy Jones:
http://www.hcso.hernando.fl.us/Records/ShowImg.asp?BookingID=03-2624&SubID=2
003-10485*1&Date1=5/18/2003&Date2=5/18/2003
His date of birth is June 6, 1978.
The felony charge of animal cruelty has been handed down, and it's our
responsibility to see that this miscreant, if guilty, is handed the most
severe sentence allowed. This is a vicious and heinous crime. Also, remind
yourself and those you write that it is a proven fact that those individuals
that have gone on to be the worst of the serial killers we've seen, all got
started torturing, mutilating and killing animals. When you make your
contacts, please think of how you would feel, if your best friend and
companion were Kay.
VOCAL is asking that upon being found guilty, Mr. Jones punishment should
include, but not be limited to:
*Fullest period of incarceration allowed by law;
*Full psychiatric evaluation;
*Anger management intervention;
*That Mr. Jones never be allowed to have animals in his presence again.
Please send a letter to the State Attorney for Pasco County:
The contact info is:
State Attorney Bernie McCabe
P.O. Box 5028
Clearwater, FL 33758
(727) 464-6221
The Judge is:
Judge Marc H. Salton
Rm. 109, 7530 Little Road
New Port Richey, FL 34654
(727) 847-8173
The case number is 03-1894CFAWS.
Additionally, if you'd like to send a Letter to the Editor of The St.
Petersburg Times (who ran the original story below), this is their info:
Letters for publication should be addressed to Letters to the Editor, P.O.
Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731. They can be sent by e-mail to
letters@sptimes.com or by fax to 893-8675.
They should be brief and must include the writer's name, address and phone
number.
Letters may be edited for clarity, taste and length.
Mr. Jones had just recently moved, allegedly. His new neighbors might want
to know what kind of individual will be greeting them on the street, in the
grocery store, at the park, etc. You may feel it to be your duty to let
them know via polite letters. Remember, Mr. Jones has been accused and
charged, but not convicted...
Morgan Foster Carter and Pamela Carter
9134 Carter Rd.
Brooksville, FL 34605
Louise Carter
9089 Carter Rd.
Brooksville, FL 34605
*****************************************************************
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/05/22/Pasco/Man_charged_with_crue.shtml
Man charged with cruelty in terrier's death
The dog's owner says a neighbor killed his pet. Witnesses said the neighbor
hit the terrier with a baseball bat.
By JAMIE JONES, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 22, 2003
SHADY HILLS - Lanny Kress saw buzzards circling above and knew he would
never see his Jack Russell terrier again.
He had searched two days for 15-month-old Kay. He had called for her,
visited animal shelters. Nothing.
She was small but lively, and usually stayed close to her home on Rigsby
Road, carrying her favorite toys, a plastic spider and squeaky shoe, across
the yard.
Kress, 58, had recently fought with his 24-year-old neighbor, Billy Dean
Jones, and wondered if Jones had hurt the dog.
When the buzzards came, Kress walked toward Jones' yard and found Kay's
remains.
Someone had slit her throat and beaten her with a baseball bat.
"I sat down in the grass and cried," Kress said.
He believes Jones killed Kay.
So do Pasco sheriff's deputies, who are holding Jones on a charge of animal
cruelty. Jones, who had since moved to 9135 Carter Road in Brooksville, was
arrested by Hernando deputies on Sunday. He was transferred to the Land
O'Lakes jail, where he was held Wednesday on $5,000 bail.
"It don't make sense why anyone would kill a little dog like that," Kress
said.
Kress told sheriff's deputies that he argued with Jones on March 14 because
Jones was having a party and burning tires in his yard, sending black smoke
into the air.
Kress said during the argument, a teenager at the party reached down and
tried to lift his dog over the fence. Kress said he yelled at the teenager,
who released Kay.
Later, after the argument, Kress couldn't find Kay. Jones moved out of his
rented trailer. Two days after their argument, Kress found the dog's remains
and called the Sheriff's Office.
Initially, deputies doubted Kress' story. They wondered whether the dog had
been hit by a car and Kress had put the dog on his neighbor's property for
revenge.
But at least two people came forward and said they had seen Jones kill the
dog.
One man, who was not identified by authorities, said he saw Jones hit Kay in
the face with a baseball bat. He said Jones grabbed a knife, picked up the
bloody dog and tried to cut her.
He told deputies that one of Jones' friends tried to stop him, and Jones cut
the friend's finger. Jones later apologized to his friend and stitched the
wound himself, a report states. A woman told deputies the same story.
Witnesses said Jones hid the dog behind a shed.
"I think he should be gelded," Kress said. "Kay never barked at anybody,
never chased anybody. Her whole life was looking in the trees for squirrels.
Oh, it's been terrible. It's like losing one of the family."
Kress wrapped Kay in a blanket and drove to his sister's house in Shady
Hills. He dug a hole and put her in the ground next to his old pet goat,
Elvis, and his sister's boxer, Dallas.
He planted a fern and plans to buy Kay a tombstone.
He hopes to get another Jack Russell terrier, but still misses Kay.
"It's an empty void," Kress said. "Just an empty void."
- Jamie Jones covers crime in Pasco County. She can be reached in west Pasco
at 869-6245, or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6245. Her e-mail address
is jjones@sptimes.com
