Know who
cannot be trusted
with an animal.
Paws on Record aggregates convicted animal abusers from public government registries (Tennessee TBI, Henrico County VA, Suffolk County NY), MSU Animal Legal & Historical Center appellate cases (TX, CA, FL and more), and widely reported news convictions. Search by your city to see who lives within 50 miles.
206 convicted and 114 on-trial animal abusers tracked. Share to protect adopters and foster animals nationwide.
Use this site to check a person's background before you give an animal for adoption or foster.
Shelters, rescues, breeders, and private rehomers — search a prospective adopter's name, run a 50-mile radius check on their city, and confirm they don't appear on a public abuser registry before you sign the paperwork.
Faces of the registry
Christopher Westmoreland
Convicted in Calhoun County, AL in April 2026 of aggravated animal abuse (Class C felony) plus unlicensed veterinary practice. Sentencing pending.
SentenceClass C felony (up to 10 years); sentencing pending.
This registry runs on donations — please help keep it free and public.
Paws on Record is a one-person operation that pays out-of-pocket for hosting, the AI news ingestor that tracks new convictions, geocoding, email alerts, and legal review. Every $5 keeps the database live for another day; every $100 sponsors an entire week. If even a fraction of the shelters, fosters, and adoption-minded families who use this site donated once, we'd never have to put a single record behind a paywall — and that's the goal: protect every animal, free for every searcher, forever.
Animal-Safety Recommendations
A one-page printable for shelters, fosters and adopters: red flags to screen for, what to ask, and how to use the registry before placing an animal. Drop your email and we'll send it.
Who lives near you?
Enter your city and we'll show convicted animal abusers within the chosen radius. Powered by OpenStreetMap geocoding.
The Registry
Filter by name, city, state, crime type or conviction year.
Ramon Aspirocano
Maintained a not-guilty plea in Ogden, UT in 2026 on approximately 338 counts of animal cruelty — part of the Vargas hoarding case (~160 dogs seized).
Shaffiria Dortch
Indicted February 18, 2026 in Livingston County, NY on aggravated cruelty to animals plus overdriving/torturing/injuring animals after an emaciated Rottweiler was found dead inside a kennel following her eviction.
Cody Roberts
Sublette County, Wyoming man pleaded guilty in March 2026 to one felony count of animal cruelty for torturing a wolf inside the Green River Bar in Daniel, WY — case drew national outrage and spurred state reform legislation.
Joseph Applewhite
On the Tennessee Animal Abuse Registry (TBI). Convicted 2-11-2026 in Shelby County, TN of Aggravated Cruelty to Animals.
TeneKo Watson
Convicted of aggravated cruelty to animals (3 counts) in Shelby County, Tennessee.
Kimberly Savino
Sentenced March 2026 in Middleboro, MA to 6 years probation after 17 dogs, 2 cats, a guinea pig, and 6 underfed horses were found living in squalor in 2024.
Michael Thomas Lawton (charges)
Charged February 2026 in Kent County, MI with one felony count of cruelty to animals after 27 exotic animals were seized — boa constrictors, pythons, corn snakes, tree snakes, and an apricot Pacman frog (amphibian).
Kimberly Savino
Pleaded guilty March 23, 2026 in Plymouth County, MA to 26 counts of felony animal cruelty (subsequent-offense enhancement) for the months-long neglect of 17 dogs, 2 cats, and a guinea pig at her condemned Middleboro property in 2024. Animals were rescued by Middleboro Animal Control in October 2024.
Miguel Segura Vargas
Pleaded guilty April 11, 2026 to 38 criminal charges in a dog-hoarding case involving nearly 160 dogs found in his Ogden, UT home.
Dejean Cornelius Bowens
Pleaded guilty in April 2026 to first-degree animal cruelty for kicking and punching a black lab named Mitch to death at a Ballard, Seattle kennel in August 2025.
Dejean Cornelius Bowens (plea update)
Changed plea to guilty April 8, 2026 in King County Superior Court on first-degree felony animal cruelty for beating black Lab 'Mitch' to death in August 2025 at Lazy Dog Crazy Dog in Ballard.
Kyra Johnson
Sentenced April 2026 in Des Moines, IA to 2 years in prison (Alford plea) on one count of animal torture and one count of animal neglect causing injury.
Cynthia Payne
On the Tennessee Animal Abuse Registry (TBI). Convicted 2-4-2026 in Marion County, TN of Animal Cruelty/Neglect.
Michael Beausoleil
Convicted February 2026 in Coventry, RI on a felony count of Unnecessary Cruelty to Animals — Death Resulting, plus 4 misdemeanor cruelty counts.
Kimberly Savino
Pleaded guilty 2026 in Plymouth County, MA to 26 counts of animal cruelty (subsequent offense). Sentenced to 6 years probation. Middleboro defendant.
Nyal & Renee Piper (final 2026 sentencing)
Both sentenced April 2026 in Bedford County, PA to 90 months to 40 years state prison + 1 year probation each on 50 no-contest cruelty counts. ~90 dogs and cats had been rescued from the Piper home in 2024.
Michael Terence Sauer & Julia Evans Pickett
Charged Jan 14, 2026 in Lexington County, SC with felony/misdemeanor ill-treatment of animals, torture, and improper burial of dead animals. ~100 dogs, cats, poultry, and livestock seized in unsanitary conditions across multiple properties; some animals died, others were contagiously ill. Pickett faces 12+ cruelty counts plus two burial charges.
Eric Werner
Convicted 2026 in Lancaster County, PA on 17 animal cruelty counts for abandoning 20 dogs and cats inside a boarded-up home following a 2023 eviction.
Miguel Segura Vargas (plea)
Pleaded guilty April 11, 2026 in Weber County, UT to 38 charges plus pleas-in-abeyance on 30 more in a 599-charge dog-hoarding case (~160 dogs seized in Ogden). Probation terms include no animal ownership for 2 years, counseling, and restitution; 599 underlying charges dismissed.
Misty Rehder
Arrested April 21, 2026 in Willow, AK on 26 counts of Class C felony animal cruelty after Mat-Su Animal Control discovered 25 dead sled dogs (many frozen, still chained in dilapidated houses) and one emaciated survivor at the Walker's Wild Ride kennel near Caswell Lakes. Locals had reportedly reported neglect for months before borough action.
Jamar Claire
Charged April 2026 with 41 counts of animal cruelty and obstruction of justice in Broward County, FL after deputies discovered 23 neglected dogs (9 adult pit bulls / mixes and 14 puppies aged 3–4 weeks) at his Oakland Park property.
Christopher Westmoreland
Convicted in Calhoun County, AL in April 2026 of aggravated animal abuse (Class C felony) plus unlicensed veterinary practice. Sentencing pending.
Cody Roberts
Felony animal cruelty indictment in Sweetwater County, WY for the high-profile case of running over a young wolf with a snowmobile, taping its mouth shut, and parading it injured through a Daniel, WY bar before killing it. Trial tentatively set for March 9, 2026 pending court ruling on motion to dismiss filed Dec 2025.
Taylor (defendant)
Convicted on two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals after placing three 8-week-old kittens in a knotted pillowcase during a snowstorm — two kittens died.