FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., June 27 (UPI) -- A Florida man charged with felony animal cruelty shot his sick and aging cat to spare it suffering, a defense lawyer said Tuesday.
Michael Stueve of Pembroke Pines faces up to five years in prison if he is convicted. His trial opened Tuesday in Broward County, the Miami Herald reported.
Yasser Kader, the prosecutor in the case, told a jury that a necropsy found that the 14-year-old cat, Mama Kitty, had health problems but they were treatable.
Police found Stueve drunk when they responded to a call from someone who heard gunshots. He allegedly admitted shooting his cat at point blank range.
Defense lawyer Denise Huard said that Stueve loved his cat and was upset because the animal was having trouble walking. Huard suggested that the cat's heart condition was fatal.
