Doctor Sentenced to Probation for Starving Dog Found in Tote Bin
The doctor accused of nearly starving her dog to death—a sickening crime discovered only because a work crew happened upon the malnourished dog inside a tote bin during a clean-up assignment—was sentenced to probation on Thursday.
“We are angry. We are heartbroken. We are disgusted by our failed ‘justice’ system,” said the Garrido Stray Rescue Foundation in an after-court Facebook post.
Anita Damodaran, 38, was being evicted from her Lincoln Park apartment earlier this year when workers hired by her landlord discovered a malnourished dog named Betty, officials said.
During Damodaran’s initial court appearance, prosecutors said the workers had been told to stay away from three plastic bins on the back porch. But one of the women noticed a nose sticking out of a bin and thought it may have been a stuffed animal. It was Betty.
“Two women discovered her, barely alive in a plastic container that had crates stacked on top of it,” according to the Hinsdale Humane Society. “Fully matted, extremely underweight, and scared to even move, Betty stared at the women who pulled her out of the container. Miraculously, she survived because of a small hole in the lid that let in oxygen.”
Betty was also malnourished and covered in filth. The workers took her to a vet for treatment. According to Garrido’s court advocate report, she weighed just 19 pounds, less than half of her healthy weight.
“She had compression wounds, extensive matting, and was estimated to have been starved for at least one month,” the foundation’s report said.
On Thursday, Damodaran pleaded guilty to aggravated cruelty to animals before Judge Shelley Sutker-Dermer in exchange for two years of probation. If she completes the program successfully, she may have the case wiped from her record.
“For over two hours we held our breath, hoping, praying, that justice would prevail,” the rescue shelter said after sentencing. “Instead, we watched Doctor Anita Damodaran, a woman who subjected her own dog, Betty, to unthinkable cruelty, walk away with less than a slap on the wrist from Cook County Judge Shelley Sutker-Dermer.”
The judge permitted Damodaran to complete probation in Florida, where she now lives.
“She can expunge it. Erase it. Like Betty never existed. Like the horror never happened,” Garrido’s post continued. “But Betty exists. She suffered. She survived. She matters. But we are thankful that Betty survived and is living the life she deserves.”
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