Carolina Politics Online

Meet Susie — the poster dog for animal rights in North Carolina.

You might remember her as the badly burned and beaten puppy found in a south Greensboro park last summer. The pit bull-shepherd mix captured the hearts of many, and they rallied to save her.

Now Susie’s supporters will gather Sunday to rally again — this time to advocate for tougher animal cruelty laws in North Carolina. They’re going door-to-door in Guilford County with information on the state’s laws, which allowed Susie’s abuser to get off with what they say is a light sentence.

Earlier this month, a judge sentenced Lashawn Whitehead to probation for felony animal cruelty, a judgment that followed the state’s structured sentencing laws. Whitehead, 21 , also received six to eight months in prison for setting personal property on fire. That personal property was Susie.

The News-Record

I’m in favor of a little “eye-for-an-eye” in cases like this. Forget the six-to-eight months in the clink; let’s pour some gasoline on this son of a bitch and light a match. Let’s see how he likes it. Maybe we’ll add a little something extra and douse the fire with vinegar instead of water.

“We want everybody to understand how minimal the penalties are for cruelty to animals,” said Roberta Wall , a Greensboro real estate agent who fostered Susie until she was placed in a permanent home with Donna Lawrence .

Under structured sentencing, the judge did not have the option to give Whitehead prison time on the cruelty charge, which is a Class I felony, the lowest level.

Under what has been dubbed “Susie’s Law,” that charge would be bumped up to a Class F felony, which allows a judge to hand out an active prison sentence.

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