This is a big moment in the world of animal cruelty where cats are the innocent victims. The children who tortured and beat a cat earlier this year are being disciplined for their crime. More about Quattro the cat can be found on their Facebook: Justice for Quattro page.
Quattro’s story began when he was beaten to death with bricks on May 7, 2014 by a group of grade school children. Those who followed the story called it one of the most horrific cases of abuse they’ve ever seen. All three children were under the age of 10.
This happened on near the school grounds of School 4 in Paterson, New Jersey. The group was throwing rocks, bricks and sticks at the cat, who could not get away due to injuries. Two brothers, who are true heroes in this story, stood up for what was right when they saw these kids beating the cat, and they ran in and stopped them and then took Quattro home to his mother to get it help.
Chance At Life Cat Rescue was contacted and immediately rushed Quattro to the vet. Among some of the injuries Quattro’s legs were fractured, his eye so severely damaged that it had to be removed, his jaw was fractured, he had blood and pus in brain and his nails ripped from his paws in his attempt to escape this vicious attack but he was too weak and injured to get away.
Those who heard Quattro’s story pleaded for justice, but the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) became involved by petitioning the Paterson chapter in Passaic County to ask the prosecutor to drop charges against three boys, one of whom is only 6. This created an outcry on social media.
While the NAACP wanted charges dropped on the grounds that the boys were too young to know what they were doing, experts stressed the justice system is there to rehabilitate and not to punish them. The chapter stated they wanted the county to “drop any and all charges” against the boys, and expressed hope that the boys’ families would seek professional help for them.
It also called comments made about the children on several social media and news websites “cruel and blatantly racist,” saying they came from outsiders who “have no genuine concern for the present well-being and future of the children involved.”
A video can be seen here of the NAACP delivering their message
The Facebook page for Quattro had an announcement yesterday that may set a precedent on how future cases involving children and animal cruelty are handled saying
“Today is the day you have been waiting for since May 7, 2014. Renee called for an update today and first spoke to Passaic County Prosecutor Donna Gade who told Renee that the court date was a couple of weeks ago and it went as we wanted. Our voices were heard and Quattro was not ignored or forgotten.”
The Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office received more than 1,000 emails and letters calling for justice. This fueled the legal systems drive to see these three children punished, since there’s a proven direct link between early animal abuse and future violence against both animals and people.
All three boys pleaded guilty to animal cruelty, which is a felony. They admitted to torturing Quattro so badly that the torture lead to his death. The boys will have to go through two years of extensive psychiatric and psychological therapy. Some of the treatments they will be receiving are anger and impulse awareness, animal sensitivity and victim awareness. The felony charge will be on their records.
The boys will also be on probation for two years and a Passaic County Prosecutor representative will be watching the boys closely. If the boys don’t comply with the court orders they’ll be brought back in for additional sentencing. This case has also led the prosecutors to develop a program where young offenders can do community service through a program that will be geared toward teaching the children how to treat animals. This program should be in place in the near future.
Quattro’s Facebook page sent out a thank you that reflects the feeling of those who read the articles at PoC.
“From the bottom of our hearts, once again, we say thank you! If you see abuse, report it. If you see abuse, stop it! We are here to help one another and we are here to be the voice of those that have no voice!
In memory and tears we at Justice for Quattro are thankful for the good people in this world and we will hug those we love a bit tighter tonight for Quattro.”
This is an important case. Not only because the abusers will receive intensive treatment, but because it shows just how much can be accomplished when public outcry forces authorities to act and press charges. It took a lot of guts to defy the NAACP, and I’m pleased these kids won’t get off with no punishment at all, which is often the case with juveniles. It’s also good the felony charge will remain on their record.
Rest in peace, Quattro. You didn’t deserve any of this. Perhaps parents should discuss this case with their young children, just to let them know they’ll be held accountable, should they injure a helpless cat.
This is the basis of previous article.
http://jewamongyou.wordpress.com/2011/09/28/blacks-and-animal-rights/
Interesting article on animal abuse.
Something has gone completely wrong with parenting today that allows children to believe that this act is anywhere near acceptable.
I blame the governments that have stripped parents and teachers of authority.
Near the age of these young “criminals” they have already developed a concept of right and wrong. No therapy will turn them around.
I agree with Linda. They will grow to be more and more sadistic. Jeffrey Dahmers ate the paperboy, for god’s sake!
I don’t care who goes on to be a serial killer, as much I am concerned with the fact that they think they got away with it and they will do it again. To another cat, to a dog, to anything that can’t fight back, probably even some other kid in their school or their neighborhood. It is all violence and it is accepted and expected and condoned and taught in the “black community” – all you have to do is look around.
Thank you Penelope. Excellent comment with some very valuable information. I believe that in the UK and probably other countries there are many mentally ill young men and women in prison who should not be there. They slipped through the net if there is a net. It is a bit depressing to be honest.
Aside from the obvious sorrow at what this poor creature endured, the most important issue here is that there is resounding evidence that children who commit these acts are virtually guaranteed to grow into adults who treat humans the same way.
For whatever reason, they do not value life or empathize with the pain of others. Kids of all ages (and ethnicity) need to know that actions have consequences. Unless they are profoundly intellectually limited , any child past early toddler knows that they are hurting others when they assault, and these kids knew what they were doing. Intensive supervision and more importantly, long term psychiatric treatment is essential if these kids are to be diverted from a path to increasingly destructive behavior.
The consequences imposed are not about “punishment” but are appropriate intervention that should be the norm when young children are involved in situations like this. Sadly, most of the time these incidents receive little or no response because of adult tendency to deny the serious implications for the child’s future and the practical fact that the resources required are costly. Even when the parents are fully concerned (because these children have often had a pattern of violent acting out long before they do something that comes to the attention of outsiders), access to the psychiatric help and intense supervision cannot be accessed unless it is court mandated.
Mental health and supervision services are a low priority for funding and only a high-profile case like this gets services. There are many more out there for whom no intervention is provided until they go into the prison system, causing much suffering along the way. Our country has buckets of money for guns, bombs and tanks that the military doesn’t even want, but virtually nothing to help make our communities a peaceful place. So, this isn’t a race issue or “just about a cat”. RIP Quatro–your suffering might have been the only way to help these kids get the help they need to have a chance at a better life.