(KRON) — An animal cruelty case is in San Mateo County court Thursday as the defense attempts to have the charge dismissed ahead of jury trial. Bryan Jose Ledesma-Ramirez, 24, of Redwood City, is accused of using a broom stick to torture a goose to death in 2022.
The San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office began the investigation into the animal abuse on Nov. 18, 2022, after detectives downloaded the contents of Ledesma-Ramirez’s cell phone as part of an unrelated investigation, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office. Prosecutors said three videos on the device showed Ledesma-Ramirez, along with another man identified as Jorge Luis Barenca-Soto, torturing the goose.
“They discovered three videos on his phone from July 22, 2022 showing the defendant and accomplice [Barenca-Soto] torturing a goose to death using a broom stick and crushing the goose’s neck,” the DA’s office wrote.
In the video, the goose “can be heard making pained noises until it died from the torture,” according to prosecutors.
Ledesma-Ramirez’s co-defendant Barenca-Soto pleaded no contest to felony animal cruelty on July 25, 2023. Later that year, he was sentenced to two years of supervised probation, 90 days of county jail and 800 hours of public service work. He was also ordered to stay away from animals at all times and was required to complete 12 counseling sessions with an AniCare trained treatment provider.
On Thursday, Judge Kevin Dunleavy will hear the defense’s PC 995 motion to dismiss the charge. The case is scheduled to continue Friday morning for jury trial assignment.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
