CALIFORNIA -- A Burbank woman whose former business rescued animals and found homes for hard-to-adopt pets is expected to be tried this week on charges that she abused and neglected hundreds of dogs.
Pamela Miller (aka Pam Miller, Pamela Miller-Sackter, Pam Sackter, Pamela Sackter), owner and founder of Millerwood Animal Sanctuary, is charged with four counts of animal cruelty and abuse and 10 city code violations of operating a kennel without a license. Jury selection is expected to get under way today.
Complaints about the kennel were first made to Burbank Animal Control in September 1997, said Eric Hovatter, Burbank city prosecutor. Volunteers at the shelter reported more than a hundred dogs were malnourished and living in filthy, cramped conditions.
The city filed charges against Miller in August 1998. Her license to operate a kennel ended, and the city would not renew her permit, Hovatter said. Miller appealed the decision, and her appeal was denied in January.
Although she no longer operates a business, Miller continues to house about 120 dogs, mainly pit bulls and terriers, on her property, city officials said. Hovatter described the conditions as ``not very good to very bad.''
The operation is no longer a business, he said. It's just "a woman with a lot of dogs.''
However, Burbank's city code requires a person who houses more than four dogs to apply for a kennel permit.
Miller's attorney, Ira Salzman, disagrees with the city's assessment of the kennel conditions and said his client does not belong in a criminal court. The matter should be resolved by a continued zoning and appeal process, he said.
"Pam is a well-meaning individual who is running an animal rescue operation. She's certainly concerned about the welfare of the dogs,'' Salzman said. He and Miller consider the conditions "very good'' in light of the number of dogs that she keeps, he said.
Burbank Animal Control closely monitors the property, said superintendent Fred De Lange. His staff inspects the kennels once a week, he said.
"It's not a good operation. It's dirty, and it's not something we want operating,'' he said.
Although she might clean the cages on some days, she is not maintaining them on a regular basis, Hovatter said. The ideal situation for the city would be to find all of the dogs a good home where they will be fed and cared for, he said.
(LA Daily News - June 9, 1999)
