Man gets 90 days for dogfighting

John Clinton Smith, who previously pleaded guilty to dog fighting and training dogs for fighting, was sentenced Monday to 90 days in jail and was ordered to get a mental health evaluation.

Smith was set to be sentenced Friday, but court records show his sentencing was moved up to Monday.

Smith, 76, of Glendale, pleaded guilty in July to three counts of dog fighting/training dogs for fighting, all third-degree felonies.

As part of a plea bargain, the judge dismissed three other third-degree felony dog fighting charges and six class A misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty.

Third District Judge Deno Himonas on Monday imposed prison terms of zero to five years for each of the felony dog fighting charges that Smith had pleaded guilty to, but the judge suspended the prison time.

However, Himonas imposed 90 days in jail with credit for 43 days already served. The judge directed Smith to undergo a mental health evaluation and cooperate with all recommended treatment or counseling, put Smith on probation for 36 months and imposed 75 hours of community service.

The judge also ordered that Smith not own or possess any dogs.

Smith's case upset animal rights activists, who pointed to his history of brushes with the law regarding animal cruelty.

Anne Davis, executive director of the Animal Advocacy Alliance of Utah, expressed dismay at what she termed "a slap on the hand" for three felony convictions.

"This is unbelievable," Davis said. "This case has gone on since 2003, it has wasted the resources of the courts and prosecutors, and this is the sentence that he gets?"

Davis said she puts no stock in assertions that Smith is mentally ill. "He has some very strong anger issues. I think that he's using the fact that he's 76 to portray himself as perhaps not competent, which is unfair to any other 76-year-old."

She did not know how he would fare in prison, but she had hoped that Smith would get at least one year in the Salt Lake County Jail.

Police arrested Clinton in 2003 when he was on probation for a previous conviction, and one of the conditions of probation was that he own only two dogs.

During two searches of Smith's home, police found eight pit bull terriers chained to a 30-foot pit, with some dogs bearing scars and bleeding sores.

Police also found a dog treadmill, scales to weigh and test the strength of dogs' jaws, choke chains, a piece of rawhide attached to a pole, 7-foot sticks that were presumed to pry dogs' mouths open, various medicines such as antibiotics, and intravenous drip equipment.

Shawni Larrabee, director of Salt Lake County Animal Services, said her agency's records show that seven of Smith's eight pit bulls were brought to the shelter, but they had to be euthanized. There was no information about what happened to the eighth dog.

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