Tacony man sentenced for dogfighting operation

A man caught operating a dogfighting operation in Tacony was sentenced on Thursday, the PSPCA announced.

Antoine Talley, 39, pled guilty to 15 charges of animal cruelty, and was sentenced to four years of probation, barred from owning or having contact with dogs during that time, and was ordered to participate in anger management and drug screening. He was also ordered to pay $3,500 in restitution to the PSPCA.

The PSPCAdiscovered five dogs at Talley’s home on the 300 block of Van Kirk Street in Taconyon May 11 2013.

“After obtaining a search warrant, PSPCA Humane Law Enforcement officers rescued five dogs and arrested Talley,” a PSPCApress release states. “The dogs, four male and one female pit bull type dogs, were found to be living in unsanitary conditions, with one in an emaciated condition. All of the dogs had scarring and injuries consistent with dog fighting, and both a dog fighting ring and other paraphernalia associated with dog fighting were found on the premises.”

Three of the dogs found at Talley’s home had to be euthanized due to “medical and/or behavioral issues,” the PSPCA said. The two others were adopted out.

“Animal fighting is not only a brutal crime, but a crime that is time-consuming and expensive to prosecute,” Jerry Buckley, CEO of the Pennsylvania SPCA, said in a statement. “The PSPCA is one of the only organizations continuing to do this work, and as is evidenced by this case, the length of time from arrest to conviction can take years. We hope that Talley can be an example of the necessity for speedier sentencing and ultimately harsher penalties for such severe cases of cruelty.”

In this case, dogfighting paraphernalia was only evidence used in the case against Talley, butas of July 2015, a new Pennsylvania law makes the possession of such paraphernaliaa crime.

Anyone with information about animal cruelty is urged to call thePennsylvania SPCA’s Cruelty Hotline at (866) 601-SPCA