Andrea Rosebrock 
UPDATE – 1/23/09 – Dog Killer High Caliber K-9 Owner Gets Jail Time for Starving Dogs
UPDATE – 12/5/08 – Plea Deal in Gruesome High Caliber K-9 Kennel Case
High Caliber K-9, a business located at 1516 Coitsville-Hubbard Road, Youngstown, OH, touts itself as a doggie day care, training and obedience school and also offers importing and stud services. It was also the scene of incredible horror when Animal Charity humane agents went to the property last Wednesday after a complaint from a woman who said she couldn’t get her dog back from owner, Steve Croley.
When agents, Kyle Ziegler and Joe Borosky, got no answer to their knock, they prevailed upon a next door neighbor to allow them to look from their back yard. What they saw was gruesome!
Worried over conditions and concerned about other dogs, they entered the property. They found 7 dead and 8 starved emaciated dogs inside. (WARNING – Graphic Pictures at end of story)
When police arrived and arrested Croley, they found 4 more dogs inside the house, also very skinny and malnourished.
When asked if Croley had any explanation for dead and starving dogs, Borosky quoted the kennel operator as saying: “Times are hard, I can’t afford to feed them. I love my dogs.”
Dog owners say they don’t understand how he can possibly say that.
“A woman saying that she gave him over four hundred dollars, and another woman paid him over four hundred dollars just last week. So he had money…what he did with it, I don’t know, but he was not feeding the animals with it”, says Nikole Owen, CEO of Animal Charity, who spoke with some of the dog’s owners.
Croley was originally charged with nineteen counts of animal cruelty and neglect, but was arraigned on only four counts in court because Youngstown City Prosecutor Jay Macejko says the Humane Agents with Animal Charity went onto Croley’s property prematurely, without the necessary warrants. Macejko says Animal Charity acted unlawfully, and that “its unlawful conduct sacrificed a full scale prosecution.”
So he only filed charges on the four dogs that the agents ’saw’ prior to entering the property. Guess it doesn’t matter if the agents’ concern was over sick and dying dogs rather than the ‘letter of the law’ so Croley, dog killer that he is, is going to get away with his cruelty and neglect!
“They should have called me. I could have got a warrant in one hour,” Macejko said Friday. “Saving animals doesn’t mean you can prosecute.”
Looks like yet another case of protecting the criminal instead of the victims. Damn shame doesn’t begin to express my feelings on this!
Nikole Owen, chief executive officer at Animal Charity, wrote to Macejko on Friday, saying that her agents acted within the law and that Croley should face his original 19 counts of animal cruelty.
The New York owners of one of the dogs that was left at High Caliber K-9 in June to be trained had their worst fears realized.
Nitro, a once robust and beautiful 105-lb Rottweiler was among the 7 dead dogs at the kennel. In June, Tom Siesto and Liz Raab paid Croley $2000 and left him with 3 months worth of food and vitamins for their beloved dog, Nitro.
The called two weeks ago wanting to pick up their baby but were told by Croley to leave him for a bit longer.
“We said OK,” Liz Raab said. “He was probably already dead.”
“I trusted him. We’ve known him two years. He was working for the place [in Canton] where we bought our dogs,” Raab said. “All this man had to do was say ‘help.’ This was not necessary. There’s no excuse. This can’t be a slap on wrist. He can never own a business again. This is the most horrific thing I’ve seen in my life.”
When Nitro was found, he was down to a mere 50-lbs and was originally identified as a Doberman he was so emaciated.
“This excuse of hard times, is absolutely unacceptable. My dog is now half the size. I just viewed him, he’s dead. He’s half the size, animal charities thought that he was a doberman, not even a Rottweiler,” Liz Raab said.
Tom emotionally added “This is horrific, to not feed an animal, this man should go to jail and not be fed forever.”
Oddie Humbert and his wife LauVonna was another couple who left their dog, a five month old Shepherd, Princess, with Steve Croley and were shocked to see television news reports of the animal seizures.
“I was praying there was nothing wrong with her,” he said, adding that their children are grown and Princess is his wife’s “baby.”
The Humbert’s were luckier than Nitro’s owners. They had only left Princess 8 days prior to the raid and she was in pretty good shape and very happy to see the Humberts.
“She wanted to kiss me, jumpin’ all over me,” Humbert said.
On Friday, Steven Croley, 37, was arraigned. He was charged with four counts of animal cruelty, plus one count each of noxious odors and exterior property violation. Judge Robert A. Douglas Jr. set bond at $20,000 allowing 10% to be paid. As a condition of bond, Croley is not allowed to own or harbor any animals. He is due back in court Nov. 13 for a pretrial hearing.
The remaining living dogs are at Animal Charities being cared for and were actually found to be in even worse condition then initially thought after they were examined. Of the 19 dogs, Croley claims to own 16 and the other 3 were being boarded.
WARNING – GRAPHIC PICTURES
What can you do?
As always I would ask that you speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. Write, call and email the prosecutor and judge and ask that Steven Croley is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Express your dissatisfaction that most of the charges were dropped. Be polite but make your point.
Local prosecutors office:
Joseph “Jay” R. Macejko
4th floor city hall
26 south phelps street
Youngstown ohio 44503
PHONE: 330.742.8791
FAX: 330.742.8794
Judge
Judge Robert A. Douglas, Jr.
Youngstown Municipal Court
265 Phelps Street
Youngstown, Ohio 44503
PHONE: 330.742.8857
FAX: 330.742.8725
Email for the Judge’s (Judge Robert A. Douglas, Jr.) assistant:
lblum@turningpointcs.com
Contact info for the Ohio State Attorney General (Nancy H. Rogers):
PHONE: 877-244-6446
WEBSITE CONTACT FORM: http://www.ag4ohio.gov/Public/details.aspx?s=222
Be sure to also sign the petition that is sponsored by the Nitro Foundation
Croley’s blatant cruelty and neglect cannot be allowed to be swept under the carpet. These dogs suffered and seven of them died horrible cruel deaths. There is no excuse whatsoever!
Wait a minute…The neighbors allowed them to look from their backyard…Well, what was wrong with the neighbor’s eyes..and nose??!!WTF!!Did I miss something??How could the neighbors not know this was going on??Or did they just not care??I don’t get this..I must be a nosy neighbor I quess..And I’m not even going to try and comment on the it’s unlawful to enter the property BS…Bunch of shit if you ask me..
Fedex this High Caliber Killer straight to hell.
@AIR -Thanks…I forgot to add my thoughts about the verminous scumbag in my rage..You said it perfectly..
Oh, and here is the youtube news report video which includes shots of the *vermin*. VIDEO
*AUGH* here is another video interviewing Nitro’s owners. GAD…I wanna just….oooooohhhh…lemme just…oooohhh… VIDEO
F__Bastard!!Must stop now..PG-13 just went flying out the window….Those poor people!!
protective services are the voices for children and animals. if those dead and dying in that yard and house were children, are we expected to believe that this monster would only be charged with killing the 4 children because a warrent wasn’t obtained? ‘oh officer, i just couldn’t afford to feed my children in these economic time. i love my children’. excuse me? an animal is a responsibility the same as a child. they have no voice except for those who try to speak for them. and these morons who are supposed to interpret the law are tying the hands of those who do. once the victim is dead or dying, they cease to exsist. only the criminal has rights. this sucks.
maybe a good old lynching is in order for this scum. change the laws.
Please visit our website for additional information. This man is a murderer and murdered my dog.
Nitro Foundation
@Liz – Thank you so much for getting in touch with me here. This story haunted me for days before I could even write about it. The pictures of the dogs so cruelly starved just broke my heart.
You have my deepest and most sincere condolences about the loss of your beautiful boy, Nitro. I can only imagine how devastated I would be to lose one of my babies, let alone in this horrific manner.
What this monster, Steven Croley, did, there is no excuse! As you can see, my friends and readers feel the same way. I will add the addresses from your website and encourage everyone to write letters and demand justice, although there can never be justice truly for the loss of these poor babies.
My kindest regards to you,
Deanna
Petition and sample letters are up on our website – HERE.
Thanks for your support.
WTF I JUST DON’T KNOW WHAT TO SAY BUT I KNOW WHAT I WOULD LOVE TO SAY.THIS SCUMB BAG NEEDS TO BE LOCKED AWAY WITH NO FOOD TILL HE IS DEAD DEAD DEAD!!!!! SORRY DEANNA BUT I’M TRYING TO BE NICE. WHAT I DON’T GET IS IF HE COULDN’T AFFORD TO FEED THESE DOGS WHY IN THE F… DIDN’T HE CALL THE OWNERS OF THESE DOGS TO COME & GET THEIR DOG’S. I CAN GUESS WHAT HE DID WITH THE MONEY DOES DRUG’S SOUND LIKE THE ANSWER????? I WISH I SOMEONE WOULD START A PETITION TO CHANGE THE LAW IN CASES LIKE THIS WHERE A WARRENT IS NOT NEEDED OR KNOWS HOW TO LET ME KNOW BECAUSE I’M READY TO EITHER HELP OR START ONE MYSELF. THIS BULLSHIT NEEDS TO STOP NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OH AND TO THE OWNERS OF NITRO & ALL THE OTHER DEAD DOGS MY HEART GOES OUT TO YOU I CRIED WHEN I WATCHED THE VIDEO’S OF NITRO’S OWNER’S I KNOW IT’S SO HARD KNOWING YOUR BELOVED DOGS DIED ALL ALONE WITH SOMEONE WHO DIDN’T LOVE & CARE FOR THEM. R.I.P. NITRO & ALL THE OTHER DOG’S ALSO. GOD HAS YOU NOW & I KNOW YOU ARE WAITING FOR THE DAY WHEN YOU WILL BE WITH YOUR BELOVED OWNERS ONE DAY WHEN YOU ALL MEET AT THE BRIDGE.
I am having a really hard time with this one..I have a really hard time with them all…But this one is freaking me out!!!It doesn’t make any sense!!If this gruesome scene was visible from the neighbor’s yard..well then WTF!!Why was nothing done sooner??What the hell is wrong with people??And this throwing out cruelty charges is just plain crap!!!It is a natural human response to want to stop suffering upon seeing it..Immediately!!To ask someone to stand around and make some phone calls after witnessing something like this, and not do anything to help is asking human beings not to be human beings..It’s a reflex if you ask me..Not something you could stop yourself from doing…I know I wouldn’t have been able to stop myself..It’s punishing people for being good human beings and rewarding pieces of pathetic shit with protection they don’t deserve!!!This POS should certainly be facing all the charges!!And then some!!Fraud,destruction of “property”..If animals are considered “property”….Well…did this monster not destroy “property”??All these ways of getting charges dropped..It seems there could be equal ways to create them!!It doesn’t make any sense…I’m not sure I’m making any sense I’m so pissed off…..I’m just sick…For the dogs..for the owners…just sick..
Liz, to you and all the owners involved in this tragedy…From the center of my soul..I am so very sorry…
I apologize for my language on this one Deanna…This guy has really brought out the worst in me..sorry…..
@Kerry – I’M WITH YOU I TOO AM HAVING A HARD TIME WITH THIS ONE. WE NEED SOME SERIOUS CHANGES MADE IN THE LAWS WHEN IT COMES TO ANIMAL ABUSE, I JUST WISH I KNEW HOW TO DO JUST THAT. I KNOW IT WOULD BE TOO LATE FOR NITRO & THE REST OF THESE DOGS BUT SOMETHING NEDS TO BE DONE SO NO MORE DOGS WILL BE LEFT TO THIS CRUEL FATE.
Lets all write to the Ohio officials on this case like Liz asks. We freed Ratchet, right? We can jail Croley.
@AIR – DO YOU KNOW THEIR EMAILS IF YOU DO PASS THEM TO ME & I WILL PASS THEM ON. IF NOT MAYBE SOMEONE ELSE CAN FIND OUT FOR US. THIS JUST MADE ME SO SICK. I’D LOVE TO GET AHOLD OF THIS A……
he must pay for what he did to this poor dogs
he must feel the suffert which those dogs felt
he finish one life that good gave it to his dogs
bring right back to this doga
@Kerry – Trust me, don’t worry about it, Kerry. This one was a tough one for me too and I cannot even imagine how devastating it is for owners of the dogs.
@JANET MITCHELL – There’s contact info listed at the end of the story for both he judge and the prosecutor.
Nitro’s owners also set up their own website. Here is the link. They also have a forum where you can post your thoughts.
Nitro Foundation
@Admin – THANKS DEANNA I SAVED ALL THIS STUFF IN MY DOCUNMENTS & I’M GONNA POST IT ON MYSPACE TILL WE GET THIS DONE & THIS SCUMBBAG IS CHARGED WITH ALL 19 COUNTS.
So today I read that the court date is this Thursday Nov 13 at 11:15am. I know that I will be there – everyone should be there for these animals.
Youngstown Municipal Court
26 South Phelps Street
Youngstown, Ohio 44503
There is no way to describe the pain that Liz & Tom are experiencing. I am glad they are pushing for tougher laws. That guy Croley is a monster, and may he suffer the wrath of God. I just have no words except the death penalty via electric chair to Croley. I agree, how could the neighbors not know about it? I mean come on, the smell and crying of those poor dogs- perhaps they are like him. Scum.
imissMyBetsy
Liz, I am so sorry about Nitro. This bastard needs to be chained up and starved to death. I must point out though, that all should watch the kennels they put their beloved animals in. I took our dog to a kennel last year for a few days and she had lost weight and when I went to get her she was like a maniac just waiting to get out of there. I will never do that again. It took her a long time to get back to normal. The only thing now is she can’t stand for me to leave her. I have put some scars on my poor lab. Find a family member or friend to watch them. If this isn’t possible, please research the kennel. I wish I had the money as I would open a beautiful kennel for owners to bring their dogs. As for them only charging him with 4 of the dogs, I wrote to all the places you have listed and I hope everyone else does the same. All of our laws in this country need to change. I told the judge that if he couldn’t do the right think, maybe he should think about stepping down. The law nowadays seem to protect the guilty. Just makes me sick. You murder (and that’s what this was) you get a slap on the wrist, even for murdering a human. How pathetic has our country become? It is time to sign petitions, storm the White House or whatever it takes to start. My heart goes out to all that have lost a pet there or their pet has been traumatized.
I would shoot this sob if I had a gun~I wish someone would take him out to the desert put him in a kennal and starve him…I HATE HIM for what he did to these poor babies, they did not deserve this, and the JUDGE needs BALLS, this is why our country is hearing more and mroe animal cruelty cases everyday, NO ONE IS GETTING JAIL TIM THAT COUNTS DAMN IT!
59-36 in favor of HB 70 NITRO’S LAW. The bill passes the House and moves to the Senate for consideration.