A judge has ordered the forfeiture of a pet puppy previously owned by a 58-year-old Hilo woman accused of abusing the animal.
Hilo District Judge Kanani Laubach ruled in favor of Hawaii County, which requested the forfeiture of the animal when the woman, Leilani Vaughn, failed to appear at a hearing Wednesday concerning the county’s petition requesting forfeiture of the dog.
Laubach ruled that Vaughn was properly served with notice of the hearing.
Vaughn, also known as Leilani Kumunalu, is charged with second-degree cruelty to animals and obstructing government operations, both misdemeanors carrying a maximum sentence of a year in jail upon conviction.
The petition filed May 22 by Deputy Corporation Counsel Cody Frenz states the puppy was “properly impounded” by the Animal Control Protection Agency.
The document further asserts that forfeiture of the animal is “is appropriate in this case to protect the puppy from further abusive behavior and will allow the puppy to be (adopted) and released from its continuous confinement” in the pound while Vaughn’s criminal case remains active.
Police arrested Vaughn, who has no permanent address, on April 14 after receiving a report from an employee in a business in the Waiakea Kai Shopping Plaza that a woman was “beating up a dog” near the plaza at 88 Kanoelehua Ave., according to the petition.
The complainant showed officers cellphone video of the violent behavior, according to the petition.
Vaughn, who is free on supervised release — a form of cashless bail — is scheduled to appear for arraignment in the criminal case at 1:30 p.m. June 9.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.