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Pontiac rescue owner charged in animal cruelty probe

Online Niel November 15, 2024

An Oakland County woman faces criminal charges after authorities removed just over three dozen animals from her Pontiac home in September during an animal cruelty investigation and an unregistered shelter operation.

Karmen Schooly was charged with failure to properly care for 25 or more animals, a felony, and operating an unregistered animal shelter, a misdemeanor, Oakland officials said in a statement Wednesday.

Schooly also faces charges in Macomb County, where six the dogs were in legal limbo and in the care of Macomb County Animal Control for nearly a year. The pups originally came from Schooly’s TriCounty Dog Rescue in Pontiac and were finally adopted this year.

In the recent case of Oakland County, 29 dogs and eight cats were removed from her Argyle Street residence on September 27. A cat was euthanized. The remaining animals were in the care of the Animal Adoption Center and Oakland County Animal Shelter, but are not available for adoption due to the pending court case.

Oakland County animal control officers found the animals living in “abusive and neglectful conditions,” according to the release.

“Having dozens of animals you cannot care for is not a ‘rescue,’ and neglecting or abusing animals is a crime,” Oakland County District Attorney Karen McDonald said, adding that the conditions the animals were living in were “deplorable.”

In an email to the Free Press on Wednesday, Schooly said all the dogs are in good condition, adding, “I’m doing my best to take care of them.”

“They confiscated my registered service dog and emotional support animals. They hold the rescue dogs and do not give them up for adoption when the release papers have been signed for most of them. How is that fair for dogs?” she stated in the email. “I have no control over whether they will not be adopted. Just like Oakland (C)county (A)nimal (C)ontrol has dogs that have been there for 1-2 years. If the adoption rate is low, they should understand that mine would also be low.”

Schooly told the Free Press in September that the removal was “totally unexpected,” adding that he had recorded it and would get an attorney involved.

Oakland County Shelter Director Bob Gatt said in a statement that the conditions in which the animals were found “are unacceptable and we are doing everything we can to support their recovery and ensure a safe future for them.”

Schooly was to be arraigned in the 50th District Court in Pontiac. No court or hearing date was listed Wednesday in online district court records.

If convicted of the crime, according to the release, Schooly could face up to seven years in prison, $10,000 in fines, a minimum of five years of probation and up to 500 hours of community service, as well as fines additional, such as a psychiatrist. assessment, reimbursement of costs associated with animal care and a prohibition on future ownership of the animals, according to the release. It states that the misdemeanor carries a possible penalty of up to 90 days in jail and/or a $500 fine.

Schooly was previously attacked in Macomb County, where six the cubs spent a year with animal control. The dogs — Danica, Dash, Dodge, Daytona, Diesel and Dale — celebrated their first birthdays in January at the Clinton Township Animal Shelter.

They were put up for adoption in March. The dogs, Australian cattle dog mixes, arrived at animal control in March 2023 when they were 10 weeks old, and Macomb County Animal Control Chief Jeff Randazzo said they were sick with parvoa highly contagious disease. He said the puppies were surrendered by a Macomb County foster after they became ill and the rescue did not take them back.

A civil forfeiture action has been filed against Schooly the rescue, which Randazzo said brought the puppies to Michigan. He previously said the adopter received the puppies directly from a truck that brought the puppies from out of state.

A New Baltimore District Court judge ruled in January that the puppies were abandoned, and Schooly had until noon on Jan. 31 to pay $70,255 or the dogs would be confiscated. She did not pay, according to the court and Randazzo. Randazzo said animal control spent more than $60,000 caring for the six dogs. Schooly appealed to Macomb County Circuit Court, but was denied.

Schooly also has a criminal record in Macomb County, where she is charged with unauthorized practice of health care and abandonment/cruelty to four to 10 animals, both felonies, and unregistered animal shelters/pounds, a misdemeanor. A circuit judge denied her motion to quash and dismiss in October, and a pretrial conference is scheduled for Nov. 21, according to her attorney in that case and online court records.

Schooly previously told the Free Press that the six puppies were healthy when the foster family brought them to animal control, but “they weren’t adopted fast enough.” She called the charges in Macomb County “ridiculous.”

Contact Christina Hall: [email protected]. Follow her on X, ex Twitter: @challreporter.

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