- South Carolina, USA -
On March 13, 2023, Animal Control Deputies with the Oconee County Sheriff's Office responded to a property on 1104 Alexander Road, near Seneca, in regard to a welfare check due to reports of a goat being stuck in a fence and multiple animals who had been abandoned.
ACD knocked on the door but there was no response. While on the scene, they noticed two deceased goats.
A search warrant was then obtained and executed “in order to search for other animals that may be deceased or neglected,” said the Oconee County Sheriff's Office in a press release.
The search led to the discovery of a total of fifteen deceased animals, including eight goats, four dogs, one Bearded Dragon Domesticated Lizard, one cat, and one chicken.
The sheriff’s office said that the “deceased animals were either in a state of decomposition or only skeletal remains were recovered.”
At the property, ACD also found four live Pygmy goats, one live ewe, and one live ram.
Both the live animals and the deceased ones were removed by ACD.
On Wednesday, April 5, 2023, the Oconee County Sheriff's Office arrested 36-years-old JENNIFER MARIE HUNNICUTT (pictured).
As stated in the release, HUNNICUTT “was charged with depriving the animals of necessary sustenance and/or shelter, or by omission, which led [to] the death of some of the animals. Hunnicutt was also charged with abandoning some of the animals without securing another owner or providing the necessities of life.”
From information obtained by Animal Control Deputies it emerged that HUNNICUTT was not seen at the property for approximately a month and a-half.
HUNNICUTT was booked into the Oconee County Detention Center on thirty-five (35) charges of animal cruelty.
The sheriff’s office said HUNNICUTT is facing:
15 counts of Ill Treatment of Animals in General, Torture, which are all felony charges.
14 counts of Abandonment of Animals.
6 counts of Ill Treatment of Animals, In General, Overworking, 1st Offense.
According to the release, HUNNICUTT received a combined $102,975.00 surety bond.
HUNNICUTT was released from jail after posting bond.
Online records show that HUNNICUTT will be back in court on April 25, 2023, at 8:30 a.m.
The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office said the investigation is ongoing.
The sheriff’s office declined to share pictures of the animals found on the property as “as those photographs are considered evidence that will be used in the prosecution of the case.”
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HUNNICUTT’s mugshot via Oconee County Sheriff’s Office.
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Jennifer Hunnicutt recklessly abandoned these voiceless victims sans food & water. I will never understand how someone can just up and leave any animal knowing they will not be able to help themselves to food, water, & shelter. I truly hope Ms. Wright gets the full punishment considering how much these souls suffered & died.