A 49-year-old man was convicted of animal cruelty at the Vienna Regional Court after he kicked a Maltese dog on a leash in the entrance area of Palais Kinsky on March 30, 2022. The dog died on the way to an animal hospital. In the case of a sentence of up to two years, the accused got nine months, which he was conditionally granted a three-year probationary period.
The defendant had told the judge that he felt “guilty to a certain extent”. Apparently out of irritation, because security staff had thrown him out of a vernissage due to his alcoholism and behavioral problems, he had attacked the dog. The owner of the small dog – a 73-year-old pensioner – had also attended the vernissage. Because she didn’t want to carry the little four-legged friend up the steps to the premises, she leashed him to the bottom landing. The defendant took him there. He kicked the Maltese dog several times with steel-toed work shoes. The man accepted his punishment. However, since he was not represented by a lawyer, the verdict is not formally final. The 49-year-old would have three days to appeal against it.
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