By Clifford Ward, Special to the Tribune
From: The Chicago Tribune
Ullum was charged after two witnesses reported seeing him feed something to a husky named Pixie at the Dec. 17 show in Wheaton. Ullum was assisting his girlfriend at the American Kennel Club event.
A veterinarian who was summoned induced Pixie to vomit parts of an antacid pill.
Judge Ronald Sutter said it didn’t make sense that someone would try to disable a dog in the manner in which Ullum was accused, especially when someone could use the Internet to learn about drugs that would seriously injure a dog.
“Frankly, an antacid is not on that list,” Sutter said.
Ullum testified Wednesday, saying he had been eating a doughnut when he walked up to Pixie’s cage. He said he put his fingers in the cage to pet the dog, which licked his fingers.
Sutter said he found Ullum to be a credible witness, but he also said the people who said they saw Ullum feed something to Pixie were believable.
A DuPage County judge Wednesday acquitted a Pennsylvania man accused of drugging a Siberian husky at a local dog show where his girlfriend was showing a rival husky.
After a three-day bench trial, Ralph Ullum, 68, was found not guilty of two misdemeanor animal cruelty charges and one charge of attempted property damage.
Assistant State’s Attorney Kasia Malkinska argued that no one else was seen feeding the dog, and that Ullum was trying to sabotage Pixie to help his girlfriend.
“He wanted to give her dogs an edge in competition,” Malkinska said.
But Ullum’s attorney, Edward Maloney, said the case didn’t have one leg to stand, much less the four legs he said it lacked at the trial’s outset.
“The judge heard the evidence put on by two very good state’s attorneys and he found that it just didn’t make sense that Mr. Ullum would do the things he was accused of doing,” Maloney said.
Read more: The Chicago Tribune
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More Links about this News:
Man acquitted of drugging dog at Wheaton show – Daily Herald
