This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A Salt Lake County man is facing felony charges after police found several kittens stuck on mouse trap pads on his property.
Stephen Patrick Lacy, 63, was charged Tuesday in 3rd District Court with five counts of third-degree felony torture of a companion animal. He's expected to make his initial appearance in court on Sept. 23.
According to a probable cause statement filed in court, Lacy's neighbor could "hear the sound of kittens crying" coming from Lacy's property, located at 5499 S. Spurrier Road, on Aug. 23. When the neighbor looked inside Lacy's garbage can, he found two kittens stuck to sticky mouse trap pads beneath some dried leaves.
When Murray police arrived and interviewed Lacy, he allegedly admitted to throwing the kittens in the garbage can.
"Lacy said there were three more kittens in his carport that were also stuck to the traps," a detective wrote in the probable cause statement. "[An] officer could hear the kittens meowing loudly and observed three kittens stuck to one trap."
One kitten appeared to have a broken leg, according to the detective, while another appeared to have its mouth "stuck closed."
Lacy allegedly told police later that he had set the traps "to attempt to catch wild cats in the neighborhood."
Twitter: @jm_miller