Teen Cheyenne Cherry taunts animal activists after guilty plea for killing kitten in oven
Updated Thursday, July 16th 2009, 9:08 AM
Lombard for NewsAnimal lovers gathered across the street of the Bronx Supreme Court.
Cheyenne Cherry
Young Tiger Lily
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Pet Justice
Kitten killer Cheyenne Cherry can't own a pet for three years. Is that long enough?
A heartless kitty killer hissed angrily at animal rights activists Wednesday, grinning widely as she took credit for stuffing the helpless pet into a 500-degree oven.
"It's dead, bitch!" snapped an unrepentant Cheyenne Cherry, sticking her tongue out after a plea bargain that will put her behind bars for a year in the May 6 killing of tiny Tiger Lily.
Cherry, 17, was confronted after her guilty plea in Bronx Supreme Court to charges of animal cruelty and attempted burglary in the May 6 killing at her former roommate's apartment.
Tiger Lily was left to die inside the blistering oven after Cherry and a 14-year-old friend trashed the apartment of Valerie Hernandez, destroying furniture before stealing DVDs and food.
After her arrest, Cherry told police the cat killing was "just a joke."
In court Wednesday, Cherry admitted to Judge Margaret Clancy that the younger girl put the cat in the oven - and "I didn't let the cat out."
The pair fled the apartment because they didn't want to hear the dying cat's cries or desperate scratching at the oven door, authorities said.
The second girl is facing trial in Family Court because of her age. Prosecutor Jennifer Troiano said Cherry was granted a plea deal because her cohort was "more culpable" for the crimes.
Under the agreement, Cherry pleaded guilty to two charges in a six-count indictment. She waived her right to appeal and agreed not to keep a pet for the next three years. Cherry, jailed on a probation violation, faces formal sentencing July 31.
As she exited the courtroom, she passed a row of animal rights activists outraged by her crime.
"Justice for Tiger Lily," read one sign held by the demonstrators.
Sharon Tuerlings, 43, of Levittown, L.I., extended both her middle fingers and kissed them. Cherry grinned widely, stuck out her tongue and responded with her profane retort.
Cherry is not new to animal crimes.
She was busted last year for using a BB gun to dog-nap a teacup Yorkie with her boyfriend. She was also arrested for robbing a man of his iPod at gunpoint.
The dozen animal lovers who attended the hearing said they represented more than 20,000 people who signed an online petition supporting harsh punishment for Cherry.
They were thrilled by the deal that guaranteed Cherry would do time for the cruel killing. "She is dangerous," said Brooklyn cat owner Josie Marrero. "A very dangerous young lady."
Tuerlings said she wanted to get a glimpse of the monster behind the cat execution. "It felt so good to look at her ugly face," she said. "Those evil eyes that she has."
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BRONX LOVE SPAT SPURS SICKENING KITTEN SLAY
By PHILIP MESSING
Last updated: 11:32 am
June 5, 2009
Posted: 2:17 am
June 5, 2009
A cat-hating Bronx teen roasted a helpless kitten alive in a heartless attempt to get revenge on her lesbian lover, authorities said yesterday.
Cheyenne Cherry, 17, and an accomplice allegedly broke into the Mott Haven home of ex-gal pal Valerie Hernandez, 19, on May 6.
They tossed her little cat, Tiger Lily, into the oven, then turned it on, authorities said.
"The kitten was burned alive, and it did not happen quickly. It was an agonizing death," said ASPCA Assistant Director Joe Pentangelo.
Cherry and her partner in crime also busted up Hernandez's home, slashing the couch, cutting TV wires and swiping food, sources said.
The invaders left the kitten trying to claw its way out. A fire eventually started in the Tinton Avenue home, and firefighters made the grim discovery.
Cherry was charged with arson, burglary, criminal trespass and felony aggravated animal cruelty. When asked why she did it, she allegedly said, "I don't like cats."
TEEN ACCUSED OF BAKING CAT TAUNTS ANIMAL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS
By KIRSTEN FLEMING
Posted: 6:04 pm
July 15, 2009
The fur started flying in a Bronx Courthouse when a teenager charged with baking her ex-girlfriend's cat in an oven taunted animal rights activists minutes after she pleaded guilty to animal cruelty.
"It's dead, b----," said Cheyenne Cherry, 17 as she stuck out her tongue at the half a dozen cat crusaders who came to show support for Tiger Lily, the feline she admitted to roasting like a Thanksgiving turkey in June 2009.
The unrepentive act was aimed at Sharon Tuerlings, a Levittown mortgage saleswoman who moonlights as an animal rescuer. She flipped Cherry the double bird when she was exiting the courtroom.
"It felt good to look at her ugly face. She should have gotten a longer sentence," said Tuerlings.
Cherry, who felt scorned by her lesbian lover and took out her rage on the woman's cat, pleaded guilty to charges of attempted burglary and animal cruelty and will likely serve one year in jail. Cherry will also prohibited from owning a pet for three years.
According to Bronx assistant District Attorney, Jennifer Troiano, Cherry's 14-year-old partner-in-crime was found to be more culpable for the putting cat in the oven, which started a fire at the Mott Haven home of Cherry's ex-paramour, Valerie Hernandez, 19.
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