On behalf of all animal-lovers out there, it’s heartbreaking to even think about the cruelties that animals are put through because they were at mercy of certain malicious human beings. It seems as though the news of this happening comes round all too often without any real consequences dealt to the perpetrators. Thankfully, there’s one judge who is tired of animal abusers receiving little to no punishment, and so he decided to get creative with the punishments he doles out on the accused.
Judge Michael Cicconetti from Ohio gives animal abusers sentences that he believes will teach them a lesson. Being an animal lover himself, the crimes against animals strikes a chord with the judge. His affinity for animals began when he adopted his first dog which was a Dachshund-mix named Herman. Now, Judge Mike has a 10-year-old Bernese mountain dog named Kasey and his love of animals is still as strong as ever.
The animal-loving judge will not stand to have perpetrators go off without being punished for their crimes 
This passion for animals is seen in the way he deals with animal abusers in the courtroom. Although he is required to follow the parameters of the law which dictates that he can’t give out ‘cruel or unusual punishments,’ does not mean he cannot get creative with the punishments in question.
He says that his punishments are not meant to put anyone in harm’s way but “that doesn’t mean that they can’t deal with a little discomfort and embarrassment.” One case was presented to him was when a dog was found to be living in total filth, utterly neglected by it’s owner. This prompted Judge Mike to put the owner in the exact situation by making her sit in the town’s local dumpsite for a period of time.
He said to the woman who was visibly disgusted “I want you to go down to the county dump, to the landfill, and I want them to find the stinkiest, smelliest, God-awful odor place they can find in that dump and I want you to sit there for eight hours tomorrow, to think about what you did to that dog while you smell the odor. If you puke, you puke.”
A woman who abandoned 35 kittens in the woods was sentenced to spend a night alone in the same place as punishment
He was also presented with another case recently where a woman abandoned 35 kittens in the woods. She got her just desserts when the judge told her to spend a night in the cold woods by herself. This was coupled with jail time and a fine.
“How would you like to be dumped off at a metro park late at night, spend the night listening to the coyotes … listening to the raccoons around you in the dark night, and sit out there in the cold not knowing where you’re going to get your next meal, not knowing when you are going to be rescued?” the judge told the perpetrator.
He hopes that these sentences will make people realize that cruelty against animals is s serious crime and he will not stand for it
He was frustrated with the fact that the usual sentences were not doing anything to stop offenders. “We started small,” Judge Mike told the News-Herald back in 2012. “It was more out of frustration because after a year or two years, we were seeing the same people come back, with the same offenses. I thought, ‘There has to be a better way to do this.'”
He also adds “Some people, let’s face it, you’re never going to deter their conduct. It took me awhile to figure that out, too. I can’t be the savior of all, because some people don’t want to be saved.”
Watch some of Judge Mike’s proceedings below:
