MARION, SC (WBTW) – The Marion County employee who was fired after 14 cats were found dead faces criminal charges. Warrants from SLED say another man, Henry Oliver Rogers, will face criminal charges as well.
Former Marion County Code Enforcer Marion Richardson is charged with misconduct in office, according to Thom Berry with SLED. Richardson and Rogers were both charged with an animal euthanasia violation.
The arrest warrants from SLED say Richardson and Rogers traveled to the Marion County Animal Shelter and picked up the animals and told the shelter director they would be given to a farmer. The pair then took the cats to the Old Marion County Landfill where Richardson shot and killed them.
“Exigent circumstances did not exist to prevent extreme suffering of the cats or in which safety of people or other animal life was threatened or it was not considered necessary by South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to eliminate or control the population of feral animals,” the warrants say.
Richardson was booked into the Marion County Detention Center Wednesday and was granted a $24,000 bond. Stipulations of this bond say Richardson must appear in court as required, he must keep the peace, and he must have permission to leave the state.
Richardson’s attorney Rose Mary Parham released the following statement on behalf of her client Wednesday evening:
“Marion thought he was doing his job. He was called by the animal shelter to pick up the cats and dispose of them. That is exactly what he did. Shooting a feral cat in the back of the head is actually a more humane way of killing it than using carbon monoxide. Marion loves animals and has an indoor cat of his own. It is a wonder anyone would want to be a law enforcement officer when we not only fire them, but charge them with a crime for doing their job.”
Richardson’s first court appearance will be Nov. 29.
County Administrator Tim Harper fired Richardson Sept. 9 after the 14 cats he took from an animal shelter were found dead.
Richardson was a former employee of the Sheriff’s Department before becoming a code enforcement officer in the Building Inspections Office.
