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News Release - L.A. County District Attorney's Office
Nov. 30, 2011
A couple accused of running a sophisticated dog fighting operation from their Lake Los Angeles home Wednesday pleaded no contest, the District Attorney’s Office announced.

Deputy District Attorney Samantha Macdonald of the Antelope Valley Branch Office said Jesse Eduardo Jiminez, 44, pleaded to 13 counts of dog fighting; nine counts of willful animal cruelty; six count of animal neglect; two counts of practicing veterinary medicine without a license; and one count of possession of a controlled substance, cocaine.

Jiminez, who is out of custody on a $560,000 bond, is scheduled to surrender on Jan. 27, 2012 to begin serving a county jail sentence of 365 days of actual time, meaning he must serve the entire duration of the term. If the defendant fails to surrender, he faces 23 years in state prison.

Under the terms of a negotiated plea agreement, Jiminez must serve one year of county jail time – prior to a formal sentencing hearing – in order for 28 counts to be dismissed. Ultimately, Jiminez is expected to be convicted of one count of willful animal cruelty and two counts of dog fighting, all felonies.

Antelope Valley Superior Court Judge Hayden Zacky said Jiminez will be formally sentenced in 2013. His expected sentence includes three years of formal probation, completion of an animal cruelty counseling program and restitution. Upon sentencing, Jiminez may not to have any dogs or live with anyone who has dogs. He also will be subject to search and seizure terms by all law enforcement including the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control.

Yvette Jiminez, the defendant’s wife who has been in county jail since March 2, also pleaded to one count of willful animal cruelty and two counts of felony dog fighting. She was immediately sentenced to the same probationary terms as her husband and was ordered released as she already has served 274 days of actual time and was given credit for 410 days due to “good-time, work-time” credit.

The Antelope Valley couple became the subject of a criminal investigation by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputies after an anonymous tip received on the county Dog Fighting Tip Line caller reported dog fighting at the Jiminez residence.

When deputies subsequently executed a search warrant at the home, they discovered ten adult pitbulls chained in the backyard all bearing scars or fresh injuries. Three pitbull puppies also were found chained or fenced in the backyard. One adult female pitbull – believed to have borne several litters – was discovered inside the home. The female dog’s teeth had been manually filed down to the pulp for the purpose of breeding her without injury to her partner.

Investigators additionally found handwritten records – attributed to both defendants – dating back to the mid 1990s featuring training regimens and blow-by-blow narratives of select dog fights. Also found on the premise were three treadmills and a portable dog fighting pit that was stained with what appeared to be blood. Additionally, investigators found literature on how to train fighting dogs, how to treat animal injuries and boxes of medical supplies.

sdm


Shiara Dávila-Morales
Media Relations Division
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office
(213) 974-6724
(213) 974-3528
http://da.lacounty.gov

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Original News Release - March 2, 2011
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department

Dog fighting at residence leads to 17 dogs, arrests, cocaine, & kids taken into protective custody

http://sheriff.lacounty.gov/wps/portal/lasd/!ut/p/c4/04_SB8K8xLLM9MSSzPy8xBz9CP0os3hLAwMDd3-nYCN3M19LA0_nEDPvMJMAQ39jA_2CbEdFAFVdgp4!/?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/lasd+content/lasd+site/home/home+top+stories/dog_fight_ring_lake_los_angeles

Dog fighting at residence leads to 17 dogs, arrests, cocaine, & kids taken into protective custody (PHOTOS)

An alleged dog fighting training operation at a Lake Los Angeles home was shut down today by sheriff’s deputies, and a couple was arrested for training dogs to fight, as well as for possession of cocaine. Their four children were taken into protective custody and seventeen pit bull dogs were recovered by animal control officers.

The dog fighting investigation began when a confidential informant called the LA County 24-hour Dog Fighting Tipline (877-662-3483) to report that people were training dogs for fighting. The tip was reported to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, who relayed the information to deputies in the Antelope Valley so it could be investigated.

Over the next month, Deputies Robert Ferrell and Fred Hill with the Sheriff’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Bureau, investigated the dog fighting case, working with officers from the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control, and Lancaster Sheriff’s Station deputies. The deputies ultimately found sufficient probable cause to be able to obtain a search warrant.

At about 4:30AM Wednesday, sheriff’s deputies from COPS Bureau, Lancaster, and Palmdale Stations, joined by L.A. Co. Animal Control officers and LA Co. Dept. of Children and Family Services, went to the home on the 41000 block of 178th St. East, Lake Los Angeles.

Once there, they found an elaborate dog fighting and training operation.

On the property they found seventeen pit bull dogs, some of which were tied to stakes in the yard. Dried blood was found on a portable wooden fighting ring that was leaning against a wall.

They also found a large amount of medical supplies, including surgical tools and medication, IV saline solution, and syringes to administer medicine and to treat the dogs. Surgical tools and supplies, used to stitch up the dogs after being wounded in fights, were recovered.

Three treadmill type machines, used for the compelled physical conditioning of the dogs, were located. One of them was made of wooden slats.

Training records for the dogs, and study guides on the breeding of dogs and dog fighting were recovered.


All of the dogs were removed from the location by Animal Control officers. Many of the dogs found at the property had injuries.


Approximately one ounce of cocaine was also recovered.

Suspect Jesse Jimenez, 43, and his wife Suspect Yvette Jimenez, 41, were arrested at the residence for felony dog fighting (which includes training dogs to fight) and possession of a controlled substance (cocaine). They were transported and booked at the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

Later, during the interview process, both suspects admitted to their roles in the activity.

The dog fighting has apparently been going on in various areas in the Antelope Valley for several years.

Due to the circumstances, the couple’s four children, aged 1, 10, 12, and 14 were taken into protective custody by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services.

Dog fighting, cock-fighting, and other forms of animal fighting are not a sport, they are a felony. So is animal cruelty.

A conviction for felony animal cruelty can result in a sentence of up to 3 years in prison.

The LA County 24-hour Dog Fighting Tipline (877-NO2FITE or 877-662-3483, is funded in part by the Humane Society of the U.S. Up to $5,000.00 is offered for information that leads to an arrest or conviction of people engaging in the training or fighting of dogs. The identity of callers will remain confidential.

Additional news links:

AOLNews Mar 3, 2011

http://www.aolnews.com/2011/03/03/pit-bull-dogfighting-compound-raided-in-la-17-dogs-rescued/



*Videos:

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KCAL-TV 9 news coverage of this incident:
http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/video-news-on-demand/?clipId=5622557&flvUri=&partnerclipid=&topVideoCatNo=193016&c=&autoStart=true&activePane=info&LaunchPageAdTag=homepage&clipFormat=flv


NBC-LA news coverage of this incident:

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Deputies-Bust-Dog-Fight-Training-Center--117315598.html


*(See LASD photos by clicking on the hyperlink at the bottom of this message)

The Animal Cruelty Education and Training Committee of the Peace Officers Association of Los Angeles County (POALAC) was recently formed and has been providing training for peace officers about the unique elements of investigating animal cruelty cases, including dog fighting. The deputies who made this arrest attended this training.





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