Two from Gold Bar plead not guilty in puppy mill case
Published 10:21 pm Friday, May 15, 2009
GOLD BAR — The Gold Bar-area couple facing half a dozen felony animal cruelty charges believed linked to a multimillion-dollar puppy mill entered not guilty pleas Friday in Snohomish County Superior Court.
Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies and animal control officers on Jan. 16 raided a home outside Gold Bar and rescued about 160 dogs. Many of the animals were covered with urine and feces.
Jason and Serenna Larsen, both 37, lived in the house and were responsible for the dogs’ care, prosecutors allege.
The Larsens have said the dogs belong to someone else and they were led to believe they broke no laws. They said they were breeding the dogs for a Snohomish woman who allegedly earned millions of dollars a year, court papers said.
Lawyers for the couple on Friday tried to prevent television news cameras from filming their clients in the courtroom. They argued that was necessary to ensure a fair trail.
Judge Bruce Weiss said that the couple already have appeared in broadcasts. He denied the motion.
The couple’s attorneys also are trying to block release to the news media video footage investigators took during the raid.
Release of the footage may interfere with the couple’s ability to get a fair trial, defense attorney Mickey Krom said in court papers.
The video also may “raise the emotional response of some individuals, as is sometimes seen in animal cases, in ways that could place the defendants’ safety at risk,” Krom wrote.
On Friday, Krom said one client has received at least one threatening letter.
A hearing about the video footage is scheduled for Thursday.
The investigation in Gold Bar expanded to a Mount Vernon-area kennel, where 450 dogs were seized. A Snohomish kennel, Wags ‘n’ Wiggles, operated by Renee Roske, also is under investigation by the sheriff’s office.
Jason Larsen has said the dogs in Gold Bar belonged to Roske. Roske has denied owning the dogs. She hasn’t been charged in connection with the case.
The Larsens’ trial is scheduled to begin July 31.
Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437, jholtz@heraldnet.com
