ASHLAND — A woman previously found guilty of killing her pet cat with a knife — and knowing the wrongfulness of the crime — is going to prison for a year.
April Parks, 45, was sentenced on Monday to 12 months behind bars for her conviction on cruelty to animals.
Her sentence comes five weeks after Ashland County Common Pleas Judge Dave Stimpert ruled against Parks’ filing of not guilty by reason of insanity and two months after a bench trial for the case.
Parks has been in the Ashland County Jail since Dec. 31 for violating conditions of bond.
Sentence considerations
Stimpert said he considered all the factors of the case — mental health, evidence, testimony given during a bench trial in March and a pre-sentence investigation — when sentencing.
Ultimately, Stimpert said, his decision to impose prison time instead of community control came down to his belief Parks did not take responsibility for her actions in April 2024.
“Ms. Parks … I guess I have particular concerns about your own statement … ‘I do not think I did the crime,’” Stimpert said, quoting from the court’s pre-sentence investigation.
A PSI is a process conducted by a probation officer. The officer investigates the defendant’s background and circumstances before sentencing to help the court make an informed decision about the appropriate punishment.
Stimpert said it wasn’t clear what Parks meant by the statement — whether she literally thought she didn’t kill her cat or whether she meant she’s not guilty because of her mental state in the moment.
“There was zero evidence to indicate that anyone else killed this animal,” the judge said. “The fact remains that your actions caused this incredibly vicious death of this animal.”
Parks was charged with animal cruelty, a fifth-degree felony, after the April 30 incident in her Orange Township home. Authorities said her cat had been stabbed with a kitchen knife through its mouth.
Ashland County Sheriff’s Office deputies testified they found the cat in her kitchen, covered in towels.
Other factors
Stimpert said Parks’ prior felony conviction and the fact that Parks broke her conditions of bond while this case was pending contributed to his decision on her punishment.
On Dec. 16, the court found she violated bond by staying at a house in which her children live after the death of a person in her immediate family.
Parks’ attorney, Jaceda Blazef, said one of Parks’ sons died that day. She visited her house to be there with her family.
But Stimpert said he was more concerned with the fact that Parks’ had been violating the terms of bond by raising and selling animals while being out on bond. Simultaneously, Stimpert said, Parks claimed she was suffering from an undiagnosed mental condition.
“There was nothing that convinced me that this wasn’t going to happen again,” he said. “If you don’t accept that you did this, you certainly haven’t reached a point where you can understand what made you do this and how to prevent this in the future.”
The judge said he could not overlook the depravity of the crime, which he described as “shocking.”
“That animal had to suffer greatly from your actions. It was anything from a humane death. The pictures clearly demonstrated that. And the fact that you accept no responsibility for that is very troubling to the court,” he said.
Parks received 136 days of jail credit for time already served. She was jailed from April 30 to May 9 in 2024. When the court found she violated bond, she went back to jail, where she’s been since Dec. 31.
She appeared for her sentencing in her green jail scrubs from the jail. The hearing was held over Zoom. When Stimpert asked if she had anything to say, Parks replied: “No, not right now.”
Rough timeline of events
- April Parks picked up her three boys from school in Ashland on the afternoon of April 30, 2024. They noticed her erratic behavior and they get into an argument. One of them testified she stopped and kicked them out of the vehicle because she was afraid she’d crash.
- The boys called their dad to pick them up but he was working. They’re still near the school, Ashland Middle School. They called their grandma, Beth Jones, and she came to pick them up.
- When Jones arrives at their house, she discovered the dead cat on the counter and her daughter acting strange. She covered up the cat with a towel, she said. One of the boys called 911 and handed the phone to her. Jones did not tell the dispatcher about the dead cat because she “wanted to protect” her daughter.
- ACSO deputies responded to an “emotionally disturbed” person call in the afternoon of April 30, 2024.
- They found Parks sitting behind a shed on her property, smoking a cigarette, surrounded by her dogs. She mentioned a desire to see her grandmother, who was ill at the time.
- She had a bloodied elbow. Hamilton said she initially thought the wounds were self-inflicted, but officers discovered they were cat scratches. Parks mentioned the cat got outside and that she didn’t want the cat to be outside with the dogs.
- Deputies agreed to let Parks drive herself to her aunt’s house to visit her sick grandmother. Parks headed toward the house to clean her elbow and, according to Hamilton’s understanding, got ready to drive to her aunt’s house.
- Officers spoke with Beth Jones, Parks’ mother. Jones is who spoke to a 911 dispatcher to initiate the ACSO’s response.
- As they spoke to the mother, officers heard Parks’ boys crying. The boys said “she killed the cat.”
- Hamilton called for her supervisor, Sims. She walked toward the house, where Parks was suspected to be.
- Officers discovered Parks had barricaded herself in a mudroom, or breezeway. The room is located between the house and the attached garage and blocked by two locked doors.
- All the officers, including Sims, tried to coax Parks out of the locked room for roughly 15 minutes. During this time, Hamilton and the other deputy discovered the dead cat in the kitchen, which was covered by towels.
- Hamilton’s colleague kicked in the door, believing Parks was in danger to herself.
- Officers put Parks in handcuffs and placed her in a patrol vehicle, where she was interrogated by Sims. This is when Parks admitted to killing the cat and apologized. She said she was upset about her sick grandma and about the cat scratching her and about the cat getting outside.
- Deputies escorted her to UH Samaritan, where Parks displayed erratic behavior and refused treatment and evaluation. She also threatened staff by saying her father, who “is God,” will kill them all. Staff there ultimately sedated her.
- She was eventually transported to Ashland County Jail, pending a criminal charge.