johnnymk
08-27-2004, 05:07 AM
By LAURIE MASON
phillyBurbs.com
Noting that the crime went "way, way beyond everything that a civilized society can tolerate," a Bucks County judge Thursday rejected a Bristol Township man's plea for probation and sentenced him to six to 23 months in prison for setting a cat on fire.
Daniel Culligan, 28, also must serve two years of probation after he's released from the county jail. Judge David Heckler ordered him to pay a $1,000 fine and complete 40 hours of community service.
"What you did was cruel," Heckler said. "You chose to do something that was certainly going to cause unimaginable agony to another living creature."
Culligan, of Bristol-Oxford Valley Road, apologized during the hearing in Doylestown, but didn't have an explanation for the December 2003 crime.
"This is not me," he told the judge. "This is not the type of person I am. I'm not a bad guy."
Culligan, a father of two, pleaded guilty in June to arson and cruelty to animals. He admitted spraying the 9-month-old cat, "Chica," with lighter fluid, igniting the fluid with a match and throwing the burning animal off a second-story balcony.
The cat, its fur ablaze, ran blindly into the screen door of an adjacent apartment. The residents put out the fire and rushed the kitten to a veterinarian, but the animal could not be saved and had to be euthanized.
A tipster led police to Culligan in January. During questioning, police records say Culligan asked the officers, "What's the big deal? Everyone has hurt cats or squirrels."
Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Buck said Culligan's attitude toward the crime, as well as his failure in court Thursday to explain why he did it, shows the judge made the right call in sending him to jail.
"It's not as if this was a momentary lapse in his judgment," Buck said. "He didn't just lose his temper and hit the cat. This was just so cruel and deliberate."
When he pleaded guilty, Culligan, through his lawyer, offered to do community service at an animal shelter to atone for his actions.
Anne *****, executive director of the county SPCA, said she had mixed feelings about that, but noted Culligan could serve in a capacity that didn't put him in direct contact with animals - a clerical job, for example.
*****, who joined a handful of animal activists at Thursday's hearing, said she's satisfied with the sentence.
"I'm especially pleased with the judge's remarks. I think he sent an excellent message," she said.
Culligan's lawyer called the jail sentence "harsh," noting his client has no prior criminal record.
"The judge took a hard line toward him. He's a hard-working man who supports his family. He is unlikely to repeat this behavior. He deserves another chance," Raymond Geary said.
phillyBurbs.com
Noting that the crime went "way, way beyond everything that a civilized society can tolerate," a Bucks County judge Thursday rejected a Bristol Township man's plea for probation and sentenced him to six to 23 months in prison for setting a cat on fire.
Daniel Culligan, 28, also must serve two years of probation after he's released from the county jail. Judge David Heckler ordered him to pay a $1,000 fine and complete 40 hours of community service.
"What you did was cruel," Heckler said. "You chose to do something that was certainly going to cause unimaginable agony to another living creature."
Culligan, of Bristol-Oxford Valley Road, apologized during the hearing in Doylestown, but didn't have an explanation for the December 2003 crime.
"This is not me," he told the judge. "This is not the type of person I am. I'm not a bad guy."
Culligan, a father of two, pleaded guilty in June to arson and cruelty to animals. He admitted spraying the 9-month-old cat, "Chica," with lighter fluid, igniting the fluid with a match and throwing the burning animal off a second-story balcony.
The cat, its fur ablaze, ran blindly into the screen door of an adjacent apartment. The residents put out the fire and rushed the kitten to a veterinarian, but the animal could not be saved and had to be euthanized.
A tipster led police to Culligan in January. During questioning, police records say Culligan asked the officers, "What's the big deal? Everyone has hurt cats or squirrels."
Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Buck said Culligan's attitude toward the crime, as well as his failure in court Thursday to explain why he did it, shows the judge made the right call in sending him to jail.
"It's not as if this was a momentary lapse in his judgment," Buck said. "He didn't just lose his temper and hit the cat. This was just so cruel and deliberate."
When he pleaded guilty, Culligan, through his lawyer, offered to do community service at an animal shelter to atone for his actions.
Anne *****, executive director of the county SPCA, said she had mixed feelings about that, but noted Culligan could serve in a capacity that didn't put him in direct contact with animals - a clerical job, for example.
*****, who joined a handful of animal activists at Thursday's hearing, said she's satisfied with the sentence.
"I'm especially pleased with the judge's remarks. I think he sent an excellent message," she said.
Culligan's lawyer called the jail sentence "harsh," noting his client has no prior criminal record.
"The judge took a hard line toward him. He's a hard-working man who supports his family. He is unlikely to repeat this behavior. He deserves another chance," Raymond Geary said.