Chimacum man found guilty of cruelty in bison case

Posted
A Jefferson County jury found a Chimacum man guilty of 8 counts of animal cruelty after a trial on Oct. 10. Dennis “Denver” Shoop, 73, was charged with eight counts of first-degree animal cruelty in April of 2018, after Terry Taylor, animal control officer with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, received calls from people who saw one of Shoop’s bison lying dead at his property in Chimacum. Investigators found eight bison in a weak state, with protruding rib cages and hind quarters, from lack of proper feeding. The bison have been under the care of Center Valley Animal Rescue, where veterinarian Sara Penhallegon has worked to rehabilitate them. The charges alleged Shoop, between Jan. 1 and April 23, intentionally and unlawfully inflicted substantial pain on or caused physical injury to an animal, or did kill an animal by a means causing undue suffering, or forced a minor to inflict unnecessary pain, injury and death on an animal. This was Shoop’s second trial for the case. The first trial, last February, resulted in a mistrial when the jury deadlocked, unable to reach the required votes to convict or acquit. According to court documents, each felony count carries the potential of up to five years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines. Sentencing will take place at 8:30 a.m. on Nov. 1 in the Jefferson County Superior Court.