Schenectady man pleads guilty to animal cruelty

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- A Schenectady man pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated cruelty to animals on Monday. The Schenectady County District Attorney's Office said this plea resolved a five-count indictment charging him with criminal mischief and endangering the welfare of a child.

Elijah Lewis, 25, will receive two years in jail, the maximum sentence allowed for this crime, per the DA's Office. Lewis will also not be allowed to have any pets for 100 years, an order of protection will be issued for the dog owner and her family, and he will have to pay restitution for the cost of the animal hospital bills.

With this guilty plea, the DA's Office said that Lewis admitted to beating a four-month-old, five-and-a-half-pound Chihuahua on October 5 in Schenectady to the point that it needed to be euthanized. The attack happened in front of the dog owner and the DA's Office said that the motive appeared to be jealousy and relationship issues with the dog owner.

The dog was rushed to the Capital District Veterinary Referral Hospital in Latham after police responded to the scene. The veterinary hospital staff had found that the Chihuahua's injuries were so severe that treatment was futile and the only humane course of action was euthanasia.

A necropsy, or animal autopsy, was performed by the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine before confirming that the injuries were due to blunt force trauma. Before police arrival on the day of the attack, Lewis had fled the scene but police found him later that day and arrested him.