Local woman arrested for cruelty to animals

By Hannah Yarrington

A Sylva woman is facing felony animal cruelty charges following a shocking encounter reported by local police.

Elizabeth Zuniga Perez, 46, has been charged with one felony count of cruelty to animals, as well as misdemeanor counts of driving without an operator's license and no liability insurance.

The incident unfolded the morning of May 11, when Officer Brittany MacLean of the Sylva Police Department received a distress call about a dog being dragged behind a vehicle. About 7:44 a.m., while parked near Creekside, Officer MacLean witnessed a vehicle matching the description pass by and made an immediate traffic stop.

"I was dispatched as the call was coming in," MacLean said. "I just happened to be sitting where the vehicle was going past. I pulled out behind the vehicle and immediately stopped it. Unfortunately, what had been called in was very much true – a Shepherd was being dragged."

WCU Officer Anthony Jarvis originally initiated the call to SPD, who had been following after the vehicle, attempting to stop it. After MacLean stopped the vehicle, officers began an investigation.

Evidence at the scene indicated the dog had been unlawfully restrained with a leash connected to the rear of an SUV, enduring about 0.6 miles of being dragged.

As the investigation progressed, it became evident that Perez met the criteria for the charges against her, having inflicted serious bodily injury on the dog.

"It was clear that either she knew or should have known that the dog was there," MacLean said.

Emergency medical services arrived on the scene to provide immediate care for the injured dog. According to MacLean, the dog's injuries included severe abrasions, lacerations to its legs and damaged paw pads.

"Looking at the dog, you could tell that it had suffered a lot of harm," MacLean said. "Its feet were severely damaged and torn up. All the toenails were worn down to the foot, and its paw pads were worn off and had multiple lacerations on its legs. We bandaged those as best as we could with the kit we had, with the assistance of EMS, until animal control could get there and transport the dog."

Fortunately, it appeared the dog would make a full recovery, with no major broken bones reported, though there was potentially damage to the bones in the dog's toes.

The dog was transported to Lake Junaluska Animal Hospital for further treatment, receiving emergency care for its injuries.

"This is definitely a very extreme case of animal cruelty and hopefully an isolated one," MacLean said. "It is certainly jarring to deal with. A lot of the time, you might see something about neglect, or often, there are calls about improper housing for an animal that we have to assist animal control with, but this is the first that I've experienced or been on a call to that magnitude. I wouldn't say it is a very common one, and it is certainly not one that I had experienced prior."

Animal control continues to investigate the case, however, there are no additional charges known at this time.

If convicted, Perez could face several years of prison time.

According to N.C.G.S. 14-360(b), if any person shall maliciously torture, mutilate, maim, cruelly beat, disfigure, poison, or kill, or cause or procure to be tortured, mutilated, maimed, cruelly beaten, disfigured, poisoned, or killed, any animal, every such offender shall for every such offense be guilty of a Class H felony, carrying a punishment of up to 39 months.

Perez was issued a secured bond of $2,500.