BRATTLEBORO, Vt. (AP) - The owner and caretaker of a holiday-themed park in southern Vermont have pleaded not guilty to animal cruelty charges after authorities say they found about a dozen dead deer and 10 dead reindeer at Santa’s Land.
Lillian Billewicz and Brian Deistler were both arraigned Tuesday on one misdemeanor count each and have been released on court-ordered conditions.
For Billewicz, 56, the owner, the conditions include following a written animal care plan provided by a veterinarian and allowing unannounced visits by law enforcement to check on the care of the animals at the Putney park, the Brattleboro Reformer reported (https://bit.ly/1bI41RH ).
Windham County Sheriff’s Deputy Trevor Dickerman wrote that he saw 10 dead reindeer in a barn on the property on Feb. 12. Billewicz told police she sought veterinary care, but that the vet wasn’t really sure what was causing the animals to die. Dead deer were found during another visit. Other animals appeared to be malnourished.
Deistler, a caretaker, also pleaded not guilty in unrelated cases to heroin possession and grand larceny charges accusing him of stealing several antique items March 2 in Putney.
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Information from: Brattleboro Reformer, https://www.reformer.com/
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