SENSELESS TRAGEDY

[Penny Zwart]

As all of you know our VP owns two kennels here and was here in CT and summoned back to deal with issues with her own kennel ( moving) but was confronted with this instead. I was there 3 weeks ago and this man had many many options for these dogs

We will be planning a letter writing campaign as well as attending his trial AS i had my checkbook would have paid for feed and hauling GOD DAMIT i was there!! I would have helped In the last year PWP along with Grateful Greyhounds and Greyhound Rescue & Rehab have taken over 75 dogs from EBRO  whats another 20 Ron knows me personally and was right in front of an NGA inspector and EVERYONE offered to help  he assured all of us each and ever dog was accomadated!  Our vp could use some moral support she had to bear witness to this! Get your pens and paper ( or rifle) ready I will arm you with addresses to write to those that want to attend the trial as soon as i get information get your tickets!

 

 

[Penny Zwart]

Trainer arrested after at least 20 greyhounds found dead at Ebro
October 30, 2010 8:48 PM
EBRO — A greyhound trainer is facing a charge of animal cruelty and may face additional charges as the investigation into the deaths of at least 20 dogs at Ebro Greyhound Park continues.

The dogs were found dead in the kennels at the track Friday by investigators with the Florida Department of Pari-Mutuel Wagering who were looking into a complaint they received from a greyhound adoption agency.

Trainer Ronnie Williams was arrested by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office on Friday and on Saturday was facing at least one charge of animal cruelty, Mark Hess, assistant general manager of the park, said. Hess said more charges are expected.

It is not immediately known exactly how many dogs died or when and how it happened. Officials have said they are waiting on necropsy results, but the complaint that triggered the investigation was spawned by underweight dogs being turned over to Greyhound Pets of America, Hess said.

Calls to Washington County Sheriff Bobby Haddock were not returned and personnel at the Sheriff’s Office said no one would be available for comment on the case until Monday. They also refused to release Williams’ mug shot until Monday.

The Pari-Mutuel Wagering Department would only confirm and investigation into the death of several dogs was under way at Ebro.

At the end of the racing season, which closed Sept. 25, the park returned each dog’s documentation to the trainers and gave them 60 days to remove their dogs from the kennel either by putting them up for adoption or moving them to another track. Hess said he did not know how many animals Williams had at Ebro. At least 20 dogs are dead.

Five dogs were found alive in the kennel. Four of them are being held by the state and are doing well and one was taken to a veterinarian for immediate care, Hess said.

Individual trainers are contractors with the track and are responsible for their own kennels and the health of their dogs, Hess said. Ebro and state officials inspect the kennels at random during the season, but have not done a sweep since the track closed. During the season Williams’ dogs were healthy and winning important races, Hess said.

“We’re shocked, appalled, pissed off and all around disappointed,” Hess said.

Ebro is cooperating with the investigation, he added.

The red flag on Williams and his dogs went up on Monday when he delivered eight dogs to Greyhound Pets of America’s Emerald Coast chapter, GPAEC board member Roger Spencer said. The group had been advised Williams would be bringing 10 dogs and combined with the thin condition of the eight, they notified their national chapter and the National Greyhound Association on Tuesday and Wednesday and then the Pari-mutuel Wagering Department on Thursday.

The situation is especially perplexing because the dogs were not abandoned, Hess said. Williams continued to come to the track daily and turn out two dogs, telling other trainers he only had those two animals left.

Hess and Rogers expressed frustration because this did not have to happen. Both Ebro and GPAEC have told trainers repeatedly they will take any animals they are not able to move to other tracks or adopt out themselves. GPAEC also makes food available for trainers who are in need.

“We thought we had an excellent working relationship with the people within the compound and we do for the most part,” he said. “There’s no indication why this man ignored our promise and plea to take every greyhound.”

This is not the first time Williams has had a run in with track officials. Hess said Williams is a “troublemaker” and had been told before the close of the season his contract would not be renewed in the spring. He declined to be specific, but said previous problems did not involve neglect of the dogs.

Rogers said GPAEC has adopted out more than 715 dogs this year and has not turned away a single animal. This is a record for the group as the economy has caused many trainers to “grade off” substantial numbers of dogs.

[ruth m tuccio]

This is disgusting. It's important that we write these letters! Thinking of you both. Let us know where to write.

Ruth

[Ellen Douglas]

As bad as this is, the media could have played a role in helping to prevent this.

Have you noticed that the media was quick to pick up on the story of Michael Vick and the abuses committed in his name?

Have you noticed how if there is the slightest thought of there being any abuse to the sled dogs in the Iditarod it gets picked up by the media?

But what about the abuses occurring involving racing greyhounds?

What? It's not ok to abuse a race horse or a sled dog, but it's ok to let some monster get away with killing twenty athletes and not speak up?

If those athletes were race horses or sled dogs you can be sure there would be lots of coverage by all of the major networks and as a result there would be a large public outcry against the offenders.

Then how did it get to be ok to let it happen to greyhounds? What can be done to remedy this situation?

If stories, such as this one, were more widely covered by the major media maybe the "would be perpetrators" would maintain higher standards of practice, if only out of fear of being exposed as monsters.

So this brings the question of how to get the major media to take their social responsibilities more seriously.

I might be mistaken, but I think one way is to write to the various organizations to let them know they have fallen short of the mark of what they owe the public they, supposedly, serve and how they can improve how they serve their communities.

If they weren't falling down on the job, then how is it this story fell below the radar in almost all media markets, excepting a few locals?

I've already contacted NBC Sports online to let them know I personally feel their coverage (or the lack thereof) showed a serious lapse that on their part and how I felt they owed it to their public to do better in the future and possibly help to save the lives of other animal athletes.

I did not mention my association with PWP as it wasn't a letter sanctioned by our leadership.

Am I wrong to believe the media owes this to the public?

[Ellen Douglas]

Well, folks, if what I've been reading is true, twenty is not even close to the final number. It would seem the number is at least thirty three and possibly as many as forty.

One of the online sites has posted two photos, released by the sheriff's department, of the surviving four mentioned in the news and it's a wonder they were still alive.

Just viewing those photos brought on that sick to the stomach feeling and started the tears rolling again to see how painfully thin those dogs were when they were found.

In at least two separate stories, there is mention of many of the dogs having been taped about the neck in such a way as to make breathing difficult, never mind eating.

I hope, when this goes to trial, this monster gets the maximum sentence; even that will be too good for him. There's a part of me that says his punishment should be exactly what he did to these dogs.

[Penny Zwart]

Florida State Attorney
Mr. Glenn Hess
14th Judicial Circuit
Panama City Florida 32401

Attorney Hess
I’m sure your office has been bombarded with letters regarding the Ronald J Williams case and I do not want my letter to become just another one of them. As you noticed I marked this personal and confidential as I have much more insight of this case then any of not all of the people writing to you.
My involvement with Mr. Williams and his behavior goes back many years. He used to be employed by my daughter to care for her racing dogs. As his boss she always had a close watch on his behavior. Ron was terminated from his employment and obtained his own kennel No Limit Sports.
Please remember this statement as you read further in this letter.

I have been involved with greyhounds for a long time now both on the racing end as well as adoption and this senseless tragedy was not a cry for help from Mr. Williams it was a deeply thought out massacre. Mr. Williams was offered many options for the safety and welfare of these dogs or any dogs that were in his possession. Mr. Williams had no compassion for animals as he had exhibited in the past. On many occasions he put his own needs above the minimal care these animals required. He hauled greyhounds once for me from Florida to NY when he knew these animals have a hard time regulating temperature he still found it acceptable to pull over and take a nap. Leaving these defenseless animals to over heat luckily I was able to locate him via cell phone and get him to our location to assist the dogs who needed help. He is just a callous person. To him these dogs are just a meal ticket, and in this event these dogs cared for him quite well he had a very competitive kennel at Ebro greyhound park this earned him a nice paycheck weekly.

In October I was personally at Ebro Greyhound Park and asked what his plans were. I was informed he only had 2 dogs left in the kennel. I did not personally speak to the man, but this was the common knowledge amongst the kennel people. I was worried as I had just secured a load of 22 dogs going to NY. There was a commercial hauler coming the next Friday and if Mr. Williams had dogs we would have taken them on the spot! I had the adoption programs check book right in my purse and would have wrote a check to purchase dog food or whatever was needed. We would have paid for the hauling to adoption groups, again this was senseless.

If you take a look at the history laid down by Mr. Williams it not only shows his reckless behavior it also shows someone who is highly intelligent and thinks things through before doing them. He is very smart . Talking to him you would never expect this type of behavior. DON’T let him fool you. He has been breaking rules for years and was just smart enough not to get caught. He as recently reported to the track for improper disposal of deceased greyhounds. Now we know where they were going before. NO dignity in death for those dogs. Its almost ironic that he had one favorite greyhound in that kennel and he took him home, yet let his own brothers dog starve. The owners of these deceased dogs have grounds for civil lawsuits for sure. But you and I both know how good judgments’ like that are.

Mr. Williams deserves nothing less than what he gave these dogs, no chance! Death from starvation and dehydration is the most painful and horrid way to die. Then to add injury to insult duck tape around the neck to assure no chance of survival! Its to mind boggling to even try to guess what purpose that served.

I could continue this letter for pages, but what’s more important for me is that you know what a cunning irresponsible person you are trying to prosecute . This man was a danger for years. He also has a brother in the business named Steve. I could give you so much on him but lets just say he is just as dangerous as his brother if not more so. This is not a mental disease or defect its plainly evil people. They have no remorse for their actions. But we are not here to prosecute his brother just him.


As I told you in the beginning I would be referring back to the opening paragraph of this letter
the rest of my letter is somewhat of a victim impact statement. You are more then welcome to verify its truth.

On October 18th 2010 my son and myself as well as his girlfriend were at Ebro greyhound park to assist my daughter who is the owner of TA’S & CZ’S Kennel close up her kennels and bring her home to CT. All of her dogs were prepared to ship to Sarasota to continue racing. The day we were leaving we saw Mr. Williams, he was well aware of the moving going on. Its my true belief that is the day those greyhounds fate was decided no-one to watch Mr. Williams anymore. Everyone had moved out but him. The pet kennel located in the compound was far away from his kennel so no-one would know. Mr. Williams set his devious and deadly plan into action. What he didn’t know was she would be back! On Friday October 29th she returned to work with her dogs and took them to the sprint path which is located behind the kennel Mr. Williams was housed in. During her walk back to her kennel she noticed 2 dogs standing in the turnout area of Mr. Williams kennel. She also noticed a very distinct smell of death emanating from this building. Out of concern for those 2 dogs she alerted Stacey Strickland, who in turn called the State of Florida to investigate. Needless to say the rest is history. Stacey and Crystal with the help of sheriffs and the Veterinarian Dr. George were able to stabilize and treated the remaining 5 dogs that were found alive.
Imagine if she did not go back, the body count would have included 5 more. Mr. Williams was well aware of what he did, don’t be fooled. This was intentional he went to other tracks Pensacola, Monticello and Mobile to swap out dogs. He brought these dogs from other tracks. If he had left them where they were maybe death would have been their fate but surely not in this fashion. So many good honest people trusted him to care for greyhounds. He actually told one owner on October 22nd that all his dogs were sent to other tracks, this was a face to face discussion, yet to this date those dogs are not yet accounted for. When the horror of this tragedy was unfolding I was consoling my daughter on the telephone, she was working hard with the sheriff and the vet. When Mr. Williams came to the kennel area he acted like nothing was wrong even though earlier in the day for the first time in two months he spoke to my daughter. He knew he was caught and was making a last ditch effort to get her support. He spoke kindness and compliments to her. He knew darn well she uncovered his massacre! Yet no remorse, no pleading for forgiveness, no nothing!
I cannot go on anymore as its to personally painful for me, so many people have lost sleep cried many rivers and some have completely lost sense of reality after dealing with this mess. Do you know how hard it is for me to see those photos and know those shoes you see are filled with a human who cares so much about these dogs she will be traumatized for the rest of her life?

In closing I have to ask what type of punishment does one impose for a crime like this. Micheal Vick got convicted and only did 23 months. Ron Williams cannot get the same. He must be made an example that for every action there is a reaction and that this crime was just not against “dogs” it has deeply affected many humans as well. There is no punishment suitable to the crime, not even the death penalty. Its totally in your prosecution of this evil monster that maybe other will be detoured from this type of behavior. One can only hope your investigation will uncover other laws and rules that need to be changed. The State of Florida is the only place that owners of greyhounds have no say in what happens to their dog. The State does not require the tracks to have leases on file. The tracks all turn a blind eye to people like Mr. Williams and its high time that the STATE starts to protect greyhound racing as it has been a large tax payer and money maker for many years! 15 to 17 tracks paying tax, sounds like a good investment to me. It would not be a hard ship for the STATE to enforce rules if there were some. Security is lacking at many of these facilities, yet the State gets licensing fees from trainers and owners, The State enforces the urine testing on these animals and collects fines, yet they do not investigate the people working with these animals. There is so much room for improvement, but should it have had to come to this? NO. Attorney Hess I’m asking you personally to prosecute this man to the fullest extent of the law, for every crime he committed starting with importing dogs for intention of harm, down to the animal abuse. He brought dogs over the State line and that itself is a crime. He had food to feed these dogs it was found when they went in. Imagine being one of those dogs laying there hungry thirsty and not able to breath and smelling the food. I ask you what punishment will fit the crime. I do hope you can find away to prosecute this man for the crime and I wish you the best. I do plan to attend the trial once a date is announced.

Should you want to contact me your more then welcome here is my contact information:

Penelope Zwart
President Pups Without Partners Greyhound Adoption CT
39 Wharton Street
West Haven CT 06516
203-809-5206
[e-mail]

[Ellen Douglas]

Well, folks, I hope you got your letters to Mr. Hess and Ms. Oliver written by this time. Today's the big day and I trust that Penny is in Florida as I write this.

In case you hadn't heard, last Friday, in civil court, they only motioned for Williams to pay $170,000 in fines and to permanently lose his pari-mutuel license.

Though this sounds good, it's not the maximum and hence not enough! For some reason they only motioned for fines on thirty four counts instead of the max of thirty seven.

I wonder what happened to the last three counts, any one happen know?

Let's just hope Florida state criminal court is able to nail the monster's sorry behind to the greatest limit within their power for ALL thirty seven dogs. They all suffered at his hand and he deserves to pay the price for each and every dog's suffering, not just most of them.

[Penny Zwart]

Penny is not at hearing as we had a death in the family all I can say is repeat after me all day long HANG RON WILLIAMS!

[Susan Ploss]

Just read it has been continued with a pre-trial set for February 11th at 9am. He is still in custody.

[Susan Ploss]

http://www.wctv.tv/APNews/headlines/At_least_20_greyhounds_found_de...

[UPDATE] 12-6 10:50am --

Ronnie Williams (accused greyhound dog killer) appeared in the Chipley
courtroom today (12/6) for arraignment. He faces 32 counts of felony animal cruelty for one case and another 10 ten counts of animal cruelty in a second case.

Williams told Judge Allen Register he could not afford an attorney. The
judge asked him about his financial background and he said he didn't
own any property, and didn't have a bank account, stocks, or bonds, but he said his weekly/bi-weekly income was about $1,000-$1,500
a week.

Williams was appointed someone from the Public Defender's
Office. His pre-trial date is set for February 11th @ 9am.

[Ellen Douglas]

Anybody know if Penny has her plane tickets to Florida yet?

 

If I'm not mistaken Ronnie Williams has court date this week.

 

I still say he's not going to get nearly what he deserves, but let's hope the monster gets as much as the legal system can dish out.

[Susan Ploss]

She and Crystal are going to Florida later in the month to move the kennel back to Ebro from Sarasota.  I don't think there are any plans prior to that.

[Ellen Douglas]

Well, folks, Ronnie Williams will be spending another month in custody as his appeal was refused today.

 

His next hearing is set for September 9th.

 

They can't convict his sorry butt soon enough or long enough to make me happy. I know that sounds mean spirited. My bad.

 

As of the present time, if he gets the maximum for each of the 42 counts it will be 110 years. Sounds pretty lean considering the pain and loss of life he caused.

 

It just seems like too small a price to pay for killing so many trained athletes or unconditionally loving companions.