Men arrested for dogfighting to be held for trial

Sufficient evidence exists to show that three men arrested in October and charged with multiple counts of dogfighting should be held for trial, two judges ruled Thursday.

First, Judge Joe Z. Satterfield decided that Jamie D. Sifford, 29, of Dudley, Mo., and Jessey Short, 30, of Cape Girardeau, should be bound over for circuit court following a two-hour preliminary hearing in Stoddard County.

A second preliminary hearing was held for Curtis Pickering, 28, of South Fulton, Tenn., and Judge Stephen R. Mitchell ruled that the state presented sufficient evidence to show Pickering committed the crimes.

Testimony showed that investigators staked out Sifford's home in Dudley on Oct. 20 around 6:30 p.m. because of an anonymous tip that dogfights would be taking place at the residence later that evening.

After securing a search warrant for the property, police returned shortly after midnight, accompanied by three investigators from the Missouri Humane Society, to find all three men still on the premises and miscellaneous equipment commonly associated with dogfighting.

Among the items recovered were harnesses with 50-pound weights, often used for hooking pit bulls up to weighted sleds to increase their endurance, testified Kyle Held, cruelty investigator for the Humane Society.

Held also said they found hanging scales, which dogfighters often use to separate dogs into different class divisions, first-aid powder used to stop bleeding, breaking sticks (tools used to pry fighting animals off one another) and a horse stall that had been converted into a fighting ring.

The ring had been carpeted, something Held said was common in dogfighting to provide traction, and stained with what appeared to be blood, also not unusual, he testified.

"When dogs fight, they bleed a lot," Held said.

Scars from old injuries were present on the majority of the 25 pit bulls found on the premises, now being cared for by the Humane Society, Held testified.

No actual dogfight was taking place when police arrived, a fact highlighted by Stephen Walsh, defense attorney for Pickering.

A search of Short's vehicle revealed a treadmill believed to have been used to train fighting dogs, and a tape showing clips from three dogfights was discovered in the glove box of a sport utility vehicle registered to Pickering.

The tape pertained to incidents occurring at Pickering's residence in Tennessee, not Sifford's property, Walsh said.

Prosecuting Attorney Briney Welborn suggested that Mitchell review the dogfighting tape.

Walsh argued that none of the items found at Sifford's residence tied Pickering to the crime of dogfighting, but Held further testified on cross-examination that Sifford told investigators several of the pit bulls on the property belonged to Pickering.

Mitchell granted a request for a bond reduction for Pickering, who had been held on a $125,000 cash bond, dropping the amount to $50,000, based on Pickering's clean record and promise to show up for his next court appearance.

Sifford and Short were scheduled for arraignment Dec. 19, and Pickering's hearing was set for Dec. 5.

The Humane Society plans on requesting a hearing to decide whether the 26 dogs seized by the Stoddard County Sheriff's Department will be released into the custody of the Humane Society, so the dogs can be evaluated for rehabilitative purposes, said investigations director Tim Rickey.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 245