Laci Rae Harper
The woman accused of starving two German Shepherd puppies last fall was provided a plea bargain by Kosciusko County Prosecutor Dan Hampton that would leave her with a felony record.
Laci Harper, 27, of Burket, who also goes by the name Laci Bailey, was initially charged with two Class A misdemeanor charges of cruelty to an animal. The charges stemmed from a home video Harper’s neighbor took in September 2013 showing the two puppies extremely emaciated, weak, lethargic and having nothing but some green water left in a kiddie pool to access. The same day Patrick Jamison took the video, one of the puppies died.
With Harper’s jury trial set for this Thursday, an additional Class D felony cruelty to an animal charge was filed against her yesterday.
Initially, Hampton filed a plea cut off date of April 15. Having missed the deadline to accept the plea, the D felony charge was filed and an initial hearing on that charge was held this morning in Superior Court II with Judge James Jarrette.
During the hearing, another plea was offered to Harper, which dropped the two A misdemeanor charges and left her with the D felony. With her attorney, Kristina Lynn at her side, Harper agreed to the latest plea bargain.
Under the plea, Harper would be ordered to pay a $100 fine and $168 in court costs. She was sentenced to 2 years at Indiana Department of Corrections, all suspended to be served on formal probation. Harper will also be ordered to pay probation administration fees and probation user fees each month. Additionally, she will have to pay restitution to Dr. Sasso and costs of adoption and care for the surviving animal, and reimburse animal control for the care of the surviving animal and disposition of the deceased puppy.
The plea also calls for Harper to forfeit ownership of the surviving dog to Michael Wilson and be forbidden to possess any other animal(s) for 2 years. She must also undergo a mental health evaluation and, if deemed to be a candidate for treatment, she would have to undergo mental health treatment.
Before accepting the plea for consideration, Judge Jarrette asked Harper pointed questions and she responded that the two puppies at the center of the case were hers and hers alone and that she did knowingly and willingly torture the puppies that resulted in the death of one.
With the plea now under consideration by the judge, Thursday morning’s jury trial has been vacated. If the plea is not accepted, the trial would be rescheduled for a later date.
After today’s hearing, Harper’s attorney was made aware of two outstanding warrants against her client. Harper was charged April 14 on two counts of A misdemeanor check deception. Harper was taken into custody for both warrants and booked in the Kosciusko County Jail. Her bond on both warrants totaled $475 cash.