TOWN 'N' COUNTRY, Fla. — A judge has sentenced a Hillsborough County woman to nearly six years in prison for repeatedly beating a husky named Maya over the course of eight months.
Veterinarians testified that the abuse led to broken bones and left the dog blind in one eye.
Prosecutors called it the worst case they’d seen in decades.
The defendant in the case, 25-year-old Elizabeth Jaimes, says she couldn't remember the cruelty caught on camera, which showed her striking a 9-year-old husky named Maya with a rubber mallet 38 times.
But that was just one instance of abuse that prosecutors say went on for months.
After several trips to the veterinarian for bruises and broken bones, Maya‘s owner set up a hidden camera and caught the abuse on video. Jaimes lived in the home with her boyfriend and his mother who was Maya's owner.
Jaimes can be seen using the heavy mallet to strike Maya repeatedly as the dog wails in pain.
Maya’s veterinarian said it’s a miracle the dog is alive.
Jaimes’ defense had argued that the 25-year-old had been sexually abused as a child and suffered from PTSD.
The judge said he took that into consideration but stuck with state sentencing guidelines and sent Jaimes to prison for just under six years.
“I have never put my hands on anybody,” Jaimes said in court. “But that doesn't excuse it. So, I just wanted to apologize."
“She had 22 fractures and is blind in her left eye,” Maya’s owner, Kimberly Johns, said. “And I understand if she has some issues, but that doesn't give her a pass to abuse.”
In addition to her prison sentence, the court ordered Jaimes to undergo anger management counseling.
Once released, she'll also serve three years probation, must register with the animal abuser registry, and will not be allowed to have any animals in her home.
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