A mugshot of Joseph Miller, the man accused of leaving three dogs to stave to death in his Providence apartment.
By Kim Kalunian, WPRO News
A man has been arrested in connection with leaving three dogs to starve to death in his in his Providence apartment.
According to the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RISPCA), Joseph Miller was apprehended in North Smithfield Wednesday. He will appear in Sixth District Court Thursday.
Dr. E.J. Finocchio, director of RISPCA, told WPRO Thursday there is currently no information as to why he left the dogs there. Finocchio said when the RISCPA entered the apartment after being alerted to the situation, they discovered the quarters were “uninhabitable.”
Finocchio said two of the dogs had been dead for about a week, while a necropsy revealed the third dog had died more recently.
Finocchio said he has been getting a lot of questions about why neighbors didn’t hear the dogs barking or alert authorities earlier. Finocchio said the apartment was so full of debris it’s possible the dogs’ barks were muffled; it’s also possible the dogs did not have the strength to bark.
Finocchio said he will probably be “disappointed” with the penalty Miller receives, but ultimately he’s happy Miller is off the streets. However, Finocchio feels that Rhode Island’s penalties for animal cruelty are not strong enough to deter someone like Miller from harming animals again.
“There are just some people that, it doesn’t make any difference what type of penalty you impose upon them, they’re still going to commit these crimes,” he said.
