[8/14/04]Seized adult pit bulls trained for fighting and described as dangerous and permanently unadoptable were ordered in Warren County Circuit Court Friday to be put to sleep.

Eight adult dogs that were seized by the Warren County Sheriff’s Department in June were ordered euthanized by Judge Isadore Patrick, District Attorney Gil Martin said.

Two of the female dogs have had 14 puppies recently, and they were not to be euthanized until after those puppies had been weaned. No order was issued to euthanize the puppies, which remain in the custody of the Humane Society, Martin said.

The dogs’ owner, Jon Brown, 25, 410 Fisher Ferry Road, is charged with training the dogs for participating in illegal fighting.

Before ordering the destruction of the dogs, Patrick determined that the dogs had been trained to fight.

Two witnesses, Warren County Humane Society president Georgia Lynn and Debra Boswell of the Mississippi Animal Rescue League in Jackson, testified before the judge Friday, Martin said.

Boswell is a 28-year veteran of MARL and she testified as an expert on pit bulls, Lynn said. She knew of thousands of pit bulls that had been destroyed over her career, Lynn added.

“Their policy is that they don’t adopt any out,” Lynn said.

The adult dogs, which are now caged, were relatively difficult to care for and had shown aggressiveness toward people, Lynn said. Humane Society officials know of no way to rehabilitate the dogs so that they would not be dangerous to people and other animals, Lynn said.

The owner is being charged five dollars a day for each puppy being held by the Humane Society.

The charge against Brown, a felony, remains. The case will likely be presented to the grand jury that meets in October. If that panel indicted Brown, a trial date would then be set.

The penalty for training or transporting a dog for fighting includes up to three years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Brown was arrested June 23 and was released the next day on $5,000 bond.

The dogs were taken from near Brown’s home where apparent dog-fighting-training devices and pharmaceuticals were found. They were reportedly underweight and had suffered injuries including scars on their legs and scrapes on their necks. One dog’s ear was torn in half with a large portion of it missing, and all were infested with ticks and fleas.