Protesting the potential early release of incarcerated puppy torturer Duanying Chen, members of the Davey’s Voice group delivered a petition with approximately 11,849 signatures to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office Friday morning.
In addition to ensuring Chen serves one year in County Jail — the sentence he received in July from Judge Brian Hill — the petition has two other demands; it calls on the County’s Probation Office to mandate Chen participate in the court-ordered Batterer’s Intervention Program and on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to revoke his student visa and deport him back to China when he is released from jail.
Davey’s Voice was formed after Chen, a 19-year-old SBCC exchange student, tortured his five-month-old miniature pinscher puppy Davey in May 2014 to the point that he needed to be put down. By working with local lawmakers, the nonprofit intends to make Santa Barbara County the most animal responsible county in the state. The nonprofit Davey’s Legacy also aims to create harsher jail sentences for animal abusers.