The man who heartlessly abandoned his dog in his backyard to die has been found guilty of aggravated animal cruelty. Although the abuser was absent from his trial, he was ordered to pay a relatively large fine for his merciless abuse of the dog, who is now called Gladys Knight by her rescuers. 

The appalling degree of neglect Gladys Knight endured at the hands of Milton Craig was so severe that he was unaware of the sex or age of the dog when she was rescued from the pile of trash where she was left to slowly starve. He claimed the dog, whom he referred to as “James,” was 18-19 years old and was sick, so he put “him” into the pen in his backyard to die “peacefully.” When taken from the residence, Gladys Knight was skin and bones, and her teeth were broken, likely from chewing rocks as her only source of “food.”

On June 6, 2019, Simpson County Justice Court Judge Ted L. Blakeney found Milton Craig guilty of the torturous deprivation of his dog and a $1,000 fine was ordered. For a first offense, the crime of aggravated cruelty is a misdemeanor and is punishable by a $2,500 fine, a six-month jail term, or both. The convicted individual would also be prohibited from having another animal for two years. Although jail time is warranted for this heinous crime, Judge Blakeney determined that Craig’s health would place a burden on his jailers, so incarceration was unfortunately not ordered in this case. 

We delivered over 10,000 of your signatures to a sympathetic Prosecuting Attorney, L. Wesley Broadhead, to urge him to push for the maximum sentencing of Craig. We affirm that all acts of cruelty are deserving of the most severe punishments the law allows; however, we are generally satisfied that Craig’s crime was taken seriously overall, and he received a fairly significant fine considering the economics of the region. 

Craig’s entire community was horrified to learn of Gladys Knight’s narrow escape from death, and will be watching closely to ensure he never has the opportunity to commit an act of animal cruelty again. 

Our friends with Rescue Revolution of Mississippi continue to care for Gladys Knight, and she is recovering splendidly.

We are making headway in our campaign to get justice for animals and thank you for joining the fight through your kind support. It will take all of us to end the exploitation and suffering of our fellow species!