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Monday, July 13, 2009

Tiger Ranch operator pleads guilty to cruelty

A western Pennsylvania woman has pleaded guilty to multiple counts of animal cruelty more than a year after agents raided her property and found hundreds of cats - most of them suffering from highly contagious diseases - on her 29-acre property.

Linda Bruno, 47, of Tarentum, pleaded guilty to 12 misdemeanor animal cruelty charges and two other counts of tampering with evidence. Prosecutors withdrew more than 500 other charges based on the roughly 750 cats found on her property. Bruno, who operated Tiger Ranch sanctuary, will be sentenced Oct. 5 and could face jail time. A spokesman said the Allegheny County District Attorney's office will argue for incarceration at that time. 

Under terms of the plea agreement Bruno, who was also known as Lin Marie, will not be able to own, control or possess any animals.

She also will have to pay $200,000 in restitution to the Pennsylvania SPCA in Philadelphia, which has been caring for the 240 surviving cats since the raid in March 2008. The cats were treated for a variety of life-threatening illnesses including respiratory infections, abscesses, dehydration and malnutrition. 

Agents who raided the property found deplorable conditions in a house and five outbuildings, which were crammed with scores of cats huddled around a portable heater with no clean water and a single food bowl. Investigators also found open burial pits on the property and a "death room" where dying cats were left to languish.

Tiger Ranch billed itself as a sanctuary for unwanted and stray cats and took in thousands of cats and kittens each year from as far away as New York, Indiana and Georgia. The Allegheny County District Attorney's office said the cats will be available for adoption once forfeiture papers are signed on Wednesday. PSPCA officials say they are hoping to reunite some of the cats with their owners who may have had to give them up because of circumstances at the time, but who would now be able to care for them.
Posted by Amy Worden @ 4:27 PM  Permalink | 3 comments
Comments   
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 5:08 PM, 07/13/2009
    Ah, vindication feels so good. Finally, some justice for all those cruelly neglected and suffering kitties who died at the hands of that despicable excuse for a human being. I hope Miss Lin Marie Bruno spends some time in jail with a cat-loving cellmate. Wonder how Bruno's staunchest defender, Last Chance for Animals, will spin this one now?
    — Macy
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 6:55 PM, 07/13/2009
    Congratulations, PSPCA! Anne Irwin at Bucks County SPCA must be dying right now! She was such an ardent supporter of Linda Bruno (as well as that freak show in Emmaus, Skip Eckhart). Maybe Anne should offer to take the cats living on Bruno's property right now. I understand her shelter is half-empty most days. The PSPCA rocks the crowd once again, with their incredible agents and dedicated volunteers. I understand many of the cats were literally losing their faces. And speaking of losing face, Irwin is despicable.
    — RE-Joyce
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 5:18 PM, 07/14/2009
    Certainly the PSPCA has taken a lot of unmerited flak for their handling of this horrible situation. Who knows how many more cats would have died in that place without their intervention? Meanwhile "humane agents" (I use that term lightly) at both ends of the state have made a mockery of their profession by supporting and/or excusing the operator of Tiger Ranch. We will likely never know what happened to thousands of cats who ended up Tiger Ranch, because even with the high death rates due to illness, the numbers still don't fit. And we will probably never know why an allegedly "overwhelmed do-gooder" went out and actively solicited cats from Georgia and elsewhere... But kudos to the PSPCA and everyone else involved in finally shutting the place down. Let's hope it stays shut permanently and let's hope Lin Marie / Linda Bruno is never allowed to get her hands on another animal.
    — MakCat


3 comments
About Amy Worden
Amy Worden is a politics and government reporter for the Inquirer. In that capacity she has explored a range of animal issues from dog kennel law improvements and horse slaughter to the comeback of peregrine falcons and pigeon hunts. From hamsters to horses, animals have always been part of her life. To pass along a tip or contact Amy, click here.
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