A woman who posted a picture of her dog with its mouth duct taped shut on her Facebook page has been arrested and charged with animal cruelty, according to the Los Angeles Times. Katharine Lemansky, whose Facebook profile is under the name Katie Brown, admitted to the incident and is now facing a possible fine and up to 150 days in jail.
Lemansky, 45, posted the picture of the chocolate Labrador to her Facebook page with tape around its muzzle. The caption said, "This is what happens when you don't shut up!" She then followed it up with the comment: "It was only for a minute but hasn't barked since," according to the Examiner. The photo was shared to more than 26,000 people and went viral within hours. It wasn't long before concerned animal lovers began alerting authorities.
There was some confusion for those looking to bring Lemansky to justice as her Facebook city location is set to South Daytona, Fla., but also suggests that she lives in Avon, Conn., according to WPTV. Concerned callers led the Avon Police Department to investigate an address associated with Lemansky's family, but she was eventually located in Cary, N.C., where the incident was reported by the L.A. Times to have taken place. Family members were reported as saying that Lemansky has not lived in the previous addresses listed for more than a year, according to the Examiner.
"Taping the dog's muzzle shut was a terrible decision on Ms. Lemanksy's part, and charging her with animal cruelty under North Carolina law was the right thing to do," said Cary Police Captain Randall Rhyne, according to ABC News. He added that due to the fact that the animal control officers had found the dogs in good condition, "we did not and could not remove them from the owner."
Lemansky is due to appear in Wake County court Dec. 14, according to ABC.
