Two East Texans are charged with animal cruelty after a dog was found hanging from a tree, allegedly killed due to a landlord’s rent threat.
TYLER, Texas — Arrest documents allege two East Texans accused of hanging a dog to death in a tree killed the dog because their landlord threatened to raise the rent.
Billy Darnell Perry, 33, and Jay Heath Stansberry, 17, both of Tyler, are both charged with animal cruelty after a dog was found dead hanging from a tree on March 13 in the woods near a property on County Road 314, according to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office. They were arrested April 14.
A property owner told deputies he had confronted two unknown men on his private land and later discovered a white dog hanging from a tree in a nearby wooded area. He said he saw the same two people, who were identified as Perry and Stansberry, walking with the dog in the area previously.
According to an arrest affidavit, Stansberry told the investigator that Perry was the one who physically hung the dog using its own leash over the tree. Stansberry said that Perry tried to strangle the dog at first by placing the leash on his shoulder, but that didn’t work.
The affidavit also said Stansberry admitted to holding the dog’s leg while Perry placed the leash over the tree.
Stansberry said they were “disposing of the dog” because their landlord threatened to raise the rent due to the number of dogs inside the rental home, according to the document.
Both remain jailed on bonds each totaling $100,000.