Published: December 17, 2007 11:57 pm      

Dog case prosecutor, witnesses threatened

HOLLIDAYSBURG — Information surfaced Monday that prosecution witnesses in last week’s trial of dog activist Tammy Grimes received threats during the three-day proceeding.

Additionally, several threatening phone calls were received at the office of Blair County District Attorney Richard Consiglio on Friday, the last day of the trial, Consiglio said Monday.

“It’s awful hard to investigate a phone call, especially an unexpected one when you’re not prepared,” he said.

“But if we find out anything about them, we’ll pursue them.”

One of the witnesses, who has not been identified, already has reported the calls she received to the FBI, Consiglio said.

Grimes was convicted of two criminal misdemeanor charges Friday by jurors who deliberated for less than 30 minutes.

“The callers said they know where the witnesses live, they know stuff about their children and stuff about their pets,” Consiglio said.

Grimes said she has received one crank call since her conviction.

“I had one call this morning. Someone said “ ‘convicted ha,’ ” and hung up,” she said.

Born and raised in Patton and a graduate of Cambria Heights High School, Grimes, now of Blair County, admitted to taking the 19-year-old German shepherd mix belonging to Steve and Lori Arnold of East Freedom.

Jake the dog was tethered outdoors to a box when Grimes, responding to calls from a neighbor of the Arnolds, arrived.

She testified that she believed the dog to be dead or nearly so when she went to the house on Sept. 11, 2006.

She refused to return the dog to the Arnolds and instead placed him in a “foster home.”

He lived for 51/2 months.

The conviction was to theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property. She will be sentenced Feb. 22 and can expect to receive a fine, probation and possibly community service.

Grimes said Monday she received information during the weekend about the threats that she said reportedly were made by someone representing a national animal-rights association.

“There was nothing concrete from any angle,” she said. “In an online posting I heard people from (the organization) were threatening witnesses.”