On June 16, 2023, in Grandes-Ventes, a hunter, annoyed by the stray cats that came to scare his pheasant farm, shot the neighbor’s cat. The cat was seriously injured and had to be euthanized.
Sued by the Dieppe court on July 5 for serious ill-treatment or cruelty to a domestic animal, the defendant, aged 71, explains: “I thought it was a stray cat. I just wanted to scare him by firing my rifle, but I had no intention of killing him. I shot out of necessity. »
“I sent him an apology”
The President reminds him that by shooting at a cat with a .22 long-barreled rifle from 8 m away, he was sure to hit it. “Why didn’t he shoot in the air or just clap his hands to scare the animal away?”adds the deputy prosecutor. “I asked the owner to meet her to explain what happened, but she didn’t want to know; I sent him an apology message”
“The neighborly relationship went well; He has dogs and the neighbor has four cats. When the neighbor went on holiday, it was the defendant’s wife who took care of the cats, explains Me Malec, lawyer for the civil party. » She is asking for €1,500 in moral damages, which the owner wishes to donate to the SPA, €765 in veterinary and cremation costs and €600 in legal costs.
“This is truly a cruel act”
For the deputy prosecutor, this is actually a cruel act because it is the animal that was targeted: “Because the day he was angry, he committed the irreparable.” He is demanding a fine of €2,000, of which €1,000 is suspended. The deputy is convinced that the defendant, who does not have a criminal record, will not repeat the violation.
“He didn’t take his rifle out for fun. The pheasants threw themselves at the fence, they were completely panicked. He didn’t mean to hurt the neighbor’s cat, he thought it was a stray cat.”insists Me Morival, from the Rouen bar, relaxes her comfortably.
The court found the defendant guilty and fined him €800, of which €400 was suspended, and to pay €400 to the cat’s owner for moral damage – and finally €765 in veterinary costs.