15-Year-Old Charged for Animal Cruelty HLE officer's uniformIn late June, ASPCA Humane Law Enforcement concluded an investigation into the severe injuries of a six-month-old kitten with the arrest of a 15-year-old girl, a neighbor of the kitten’s owner. ASPCA Special Agent Debbie Koch responded to an anonymous complaint about a cat in an apartment building in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn on February 11, 2008, and found the kitten, named Tiger, on the premises. Koch rushed Tiger to the ASPCA's Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital (BMAH), where veterinarians treated her for a collapsed lung and a broken rib—wounds reportedly sustained from being thrown down a flight of stairs by the teen. Tiger was relinquished to the ASPCA and completed her recovery in the ASPCA's Pet Adoption Center, where she was renamed Kitty and adopted on May 11. The 15-year-old arrestee—whose name cannot be released due to her juvenile status—faces unspecified charges. “Abuse of animals by children or adolescents can be an indicator of family violence issues in the home,” says Dr. Randall Lockwood, ASPCA Senior Vice President, Anti-Cruelty Initiatives and Legislative Services. “It’s also a warning of a person’s potential for additional serious acts of violence when they get older. It is important to respond to these situations to insure that these children and their families have a better chance of getting the services they need to prevent future violence.” In a separate incident, ASPCA Special Agent Paul Lai arrested Queens resident Christakis Panayi on July 9 for beating and kicking his seven-month-old Persian, Atosa. The ASPCA was notified about the cat in early May by All Pets Veterinary Care of Ditmars Boulevard, where he had been brought for treatment for broken ribs and a broken leg. ASPCA agents brought Atosa to BMAH, where he underwent surgery and is still recovering. Panayi, 38, is charged with one count of aggravated animal cruelty and faces up to one year in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. If you witness cruelty to animals, please report it to the proper authorities. In New York City, contact the ASPCA's anonymous tip line at (877) THE-ASPCA. To learn how to report cruelty elsewhere, visit our Report Cruelty section.

Sad. I just don't know where some people get off thinking it's okay to hurt something that hasn't done anything to them. It just shows how arrogant we are as human beings to think that we're so much better than animals and yet we're the only animal that'll hurt and kill for no good reason but for our own sick satisfaction.

yes indeed.

this was 15 yr old child, she learned this behavior from somewhere ...

abusing animals as a kid is a serious sign of mental illness and and a main criteria for being a sociopath as an adult.

they totally lack the area of the brain that allows them to have empathy or identify with another living thing.

serial killers for example ...

abusing animals isnt just some small thing, its a clear sign of something much much bigger going on ... i hope the girl gets the help she needs and i hope they investigate her parents to see where did she learn such behavior.

Yeah. I hope so as well.

I find that more and more children are becoming this way. I mean, when I was younger, bullying existed, but not to the extent that it is now. And studies are finding that it's becoming a trend with children as young as 4 years of age.

Hate is something learned, not something we're born with. It's just sad to see that it's spoiling today's youth in so many ways.

I also wanted to add how strange it is that when I was a young child, I didn't have any friends at all so I found my friendship in animals. They were the one things that never judged me and back then I was considered to possibly have something mentally wrong with me. I wasn't abusing or hurting them and I was considered strange!

yes so true, bullying has become a very serious problem these days, and its for sure learned behavior in young kids.

parents often dont realize how their own lifestyles and behaviors influence their kids.

and me too ... animals were my friends:) i had TONS f animals id search for and rescue as a kid ... rabbits ... cats ... butterflies... mice... you name it .. i found it and brought it home hahaha

lol i was like that too :P i know im still a "kid?" lol i dont think i am one tho but by law or something i am, but i have always loved animals and have been interested in them

i'm a kid by law too lol

its really depressing to hear stuff like this. i love to rescue animals,because i love them. i can't see how some other people don't see this this way.

Yes, crazy serial killers usually started out as an animal abuser when they were young. It's sad.

I think often, it is an outlet where there is none.
If she has a problematic family life, then maybe she could only feel any sense of control or power by hurting something small. I think it is a cry for help.. it is so sad.