A former resident received a 90-day suspended jail sentence for hoarding almost 70 cats in his Boulder City mobile home in 2019.
At an April 27 hearing in Boulder City Township Justice Court, Terry Chastain pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of overdriving, injuring, abandoning or starving animals. The charge stems from Aug. 23, 2019, when Boulder City Animal Control officers began rescuing cats from his home in a local mobile home park.
Judge Victor Miller sentenced Chastain to 90 days in jail, which he suspended. He ordered Chastain to receive a mental health evaluation and to follow its recommendations for one year. Additionally, Chastain must provide proof that he has moved from Boulder City and update his driver’s license with the new address.
If Chastain does not fulfill these requirements, he could face the 90 days in jail.
Miller set a status check for Chastain at 1 p.m. July 20.
Boulder City Animal Control Supervisor Ann Inabnitt said she and other Animal Control officers had to wear hazmat suits and respirators because of the conditions inside Chastain’s residence. She said the conditions at the trailer were a health hazard and the property was a loss.
The 67 cats recovered from the property needed long-term care, and 13 of them are still housed at the shelter. Initially, 43 cats were rescued Aug. 23, 2019. Inabnitt said she had to trap feral cats in that area for three weeks after that date, and 24 more cats were found.
Inabnitt said she had to rinse many of the cats’ eyes because they were affected by the high levels of ammonia in the trailer from the urine that was everywhere. Some were also covered in excrement.
She said her department has spent thousands of dollars taking care of these animals.
Contact reporter Celia Shortt Goodyear at cgoodyear@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9401. Follow her on Twitter @csgoodyear.