Community Should Fear for Public Safety, Say Experts

For Immediate Release:
June 7, 2006

Barnstable, Mass. ---This morning, PETA sent an urgent plea to Chief District Court Prosecutor Tara Miltimore urging her to vigorously prosecute Keith Kynock of Barnstable and Todd Soderberg of Sandwich. They face felony charges stemming from a May 30 incident in which they allegedly took Kynock’s newly acquired dogs, Caesar and Hennessey, to a wooded area and—in what authorities reportedly considered an "execution"—opened fire on them with 37 rounds from semi-automatic rifles. "My dogs would literally jump off the ground and kiss me and lick me … and I’m broken-hearted," said the animals’ former guardian. News sources state that Soderberg admitted to shooting the dogs to death and that authorities discovered a pistol, brass knuckles, a black ski mask, bolt cutters, rubber gloves, and a police scanner in Kynock’s car.

For more information, please visit HelpingAnimals.com. To view PETA’s new anti-violence PSA featuring Sopranos star Edie Falco, please visit http://www.petatv.com/tvpopup/Prefs.asp?video=edie_link1.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is the world’s largest animal rights organization, with more than a million members and supporters dedicated to the protection of animals. This letter concerns a recent case of cruelty to animals that your office is handling, involving Keith B. Kynock, 26, of Barnstable and Todd A. Soderberg, 26, of Sandwich. They face felony charges stemming from their alleged fatal shootings on May 30 of two of Kynock’s dogs in Barnstable. We understand that the pair drove the animals, Caesar and Hennessey—who Kynock had acquired that day and who apparently did not get along with his third dog, who alarmingly appears to remain in Kynock’s charge—to a wooded area and reportedly shot 37 rounds at them from two high-powered rifles, killing them. The animals’ shattered remains were found the next day.

Mental health professionals and top law enforcement officials consider cruelty to animals to be a red flag. The American Psychiatric Association identifies cruelty to animals as one of the diagnostic criteria for conduct disorders, and the FBI uses reports of these crimes in analyzing the threat potential of suspected and known criminals. Experts agree that it is the severity of the behavior—not the species of the victim—that matters.

On behalf of our thousands of members and supporters in Massachusetts, we respectfully ask that, if convicted and in addition to serving a period of incarceration, Kynock and Soderberg be required to undergo a thorough psychological evaluation followed by mandatory counseling (and anger management classes, if applicable) at their own expense—the safety of the community may depend on it. Because repeat crimes are the rule rather than the exception among animal abusers and given the violent nature of their alleged actions, we implore your office to take every measure necessary to ensure that the convicted are prohibited from contact with animals and to immediately seize any animals who remain in their respective charges.