Category: News and Views
Man allegedly had sex with guide dog
Tallahasseean charged with breach of peace
By James L. Rosica
DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER
Local prosecutors are apparently in a bind: How do they charge a blind Tallahassee man who has been accused of having sex with his guide dog?
Florida, like many other states, has no bestiality statute - that is, a law specifically prohibiting sexual contact between humans and animals.
So Alan Yoder, 29, originally was charged with felony animal cruelty, but court records show that charge was dropped last Friday and replaced with a misdemeanor
- disorderly conduct.
Yoder now is charged with a "breach of the peace, by engaging in sexual activity with a guide dog," according to a court document.
One of two prosecutors on the case, Assistant State Attorney Owen McCaul, did not return a call Thursday. The other, Assistant State Attorney Stephanie
Usina, said she could not answer specific questions, including explaining why the charge was lowered to a misdemeanor.
Yoder, reached by telephone Thursday, declined to be interviewed. James D. Varnado, his attorney, said he has filed a not-guilty plea on his client's behalf
but declined to discuss details of the case.
"However lurid the allegations may be, we should resist a rush to judgment," he said.
Here's what happened, according to Tallahassee police reports:
Yoder, who lives in a local apartment complex, last month asked a female acquaintance to join him in a sex act with the dog, a male yellow Labrador named
"Lucky."
She demurred, but later told a friend about it. That person called a social worker, who called police.
Investigators spoke to Yoder on June 16, who admitted performing certain sex acts with the dog, even going into detail with them, but denied doing others.
He was arrested and booked June 22, charged with animal cruelty.
An animal-control officer took the dog to Dr. Sondra Brown, a veterinarian at Northwood Animal Hospital, who could not determine whether the dog had been
sexually abused.
Warren Goodwin, who recently retired after 30 years as an assistant prosecutor, said he could not recall a similar case in Leon County.
Annemarie Lucas, a New York-based special investigator for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said sexual contact with animals
"probably happens more than it's actually reported."
Bestiality - illegal in New York state - is "just not a natural thing," she said. "Animals can't consent ... They're probably fearful and in physical pain.
It's like any kind of abuse.
"It's a cowardly act," added Lucas, who also appears on "Animal Precinct," a program on the Animal Planet cable-television network. "It's a domination thing,
something an animal would never instigate."
Stephanie Shain, spokeswoman for the Humane Society of the United States, said her organization takes a similar position.
"It's doing something to an animal that they have an inability to stop," Shain said.
Last year, an Ocala man pleaded no contest to felony animal cruelty after being charged with having sex with his then-fiancee's female Rottweiler, according
to the Pet-Abuse.com Web site.
A judge withheld adjudication and ordered five years of probation and a psychological evaluation. He also prohibited the 27-year-old man from "owning pets
of any kind while on probation and from having unsupervised contact with other people's pets," the site said.
Contact reporter James L. Rosica at (850) 599-2304 or
jlrosica@tallahassee.com.
yuck gross gross gross
I wunder what school the dogs from? probably south eastern. hehe.
Omgosh, How could someone even get away with that? Pleading not guilty? That is completely disgusting! I can't believe someone would be so stupid as to have sex with a guide dog!
well, I'm gunna play devils advocate here, just cause I can and can see both sides. If the dog was not tied up, or forced, and could walk away from what was being done a any time, then, what is the crime? If a human dominates the animal by tieing or binding, that, is wrong, however if it is totally free, then what is the harm truly? Fuck the views of some that some things are sick and some things are this and that. In this, situation I have outlined, what is the harm
I guess that would've been going thru the owner's mind. And to answer that question, the dog is trained to obey almost whatever his owner says and probably isn't thinking "This guy's crazy." Or Maybe if he is, he isn't thinking what he could do about it. Unless the owner has hurt him badly physically, the dog likely isn't going to think he has to leave. I've hurt my (on accident) puppy before by stepping on him (to where he'd cry), but he loves me just as much as if I hadn't hurt him. Although dog's do learn things by experience, but I think unless its a big deal to them such as learning something and knowing they'll make their owners happy by doing/not doing it, knowing that someone is likely to beat them and that that's not a pleasant experience, things that are predictable like that, they likely wouldn't think about the few times someone might accidentally step on them or even the few times the owner gets the idea to do something sexual with them.
Leilani
I meant to say "I hurt my puppy (on accident) before.
Leilani
the guy must have been awefully lonely...
I don't care what anyone says!!! I think that sick and cruel!!! I hope he burns in hell for it!!! heheheheeheh I say this even though I don't believe in God. hehheheheh But you get my point!!!
*sexy*
ok, tinkerbell has esentially proved my point, unless the animal is badly hurt, so my point remains. I'm not talking about society's repultion to such things, that is not rellivent, I'm talking about the true harm done to the animal. There is none, so?
hehehe. the dog was named lucky?
Well I am all for consent and all but what ya think it was bark once for yes and 2 for no?
Yeah, reguardless what the guy was thinking and how the dog supposedly could've taken it, it's still pretty sick whatever way you look at it. Dogs likely
can't knowingly consent to something like that since it's not natural and although they can think and make pretty smart decisions I very much doubt they
would knowingly decide they wanted to have sex with their owner. I mean, not to sound weird, but if it felt good they might, but just for that simple reason, not
because they understood what was going on, but aside from that, yeah, I'd still find it sick, especially knowing that the dog helps the guy get around
and then to use the dog for sex too. I think fabolous is wanting to know what's so wrong with it from the man's perspective, but, I don't know. If people
thought and accepted stuff like that, most animals, especially dogs (being that they seem more submissive to their owners) aren't going to fight or anything,
and so of course if a person wanted to they could get away with it, and I guess for them, there wouldn't be any point of needing to stop. So I guess besides
the fact that society finds it gross/cruel, to people who would have sex with animals, there shouldn't be a problem with it. Not saying I agree at all
with that sort of thing, but besides the majority of people's feelings on this and the fact that most people just don't do that, I can't think of why it
would be wrong (at least in that guy's eyes and others who do that.) But I guess that's with anything; if it's that far out of the ordinary and not generally
accepted by others, people are going to frown on it. But if it was a common everyday thing, or not that unusual, it wouldn't be seen as wrong. So to
answer Fabolous's question, I guess except for most of society's thoughts, feelings, and normal practices, it would be OK, but again this could be said
for anything really.
Leilani
it's funny cause there's a movement out there that believes that the animal can actually have feelings towards it's owner and stuff. I'd love to read a good debate on this. it's hard to tell what an animal is thinking.
yeah, I mean, for me, I dont'look at what society does or does not like, I don't care,, I just look at things from that specific perspective, so, I'm glad someone can understand the direction I'm coming from this.
fabulous, how do you know the dog hasn't been harmed? How do you know how the dog is feeling. You say people don't know what dogs are thinking and don't know is they want it. at the same time, you can't say you know he wanted it. it is just wrong. It's not natural for a dog, or any other animal for that matter! They are trained to obey there owner. Not do them favors! Dam dude was probably a nasty somebody, that no girl in there right mind would want. So he had to turn to his helpless guide dog, that is trained to assist him in what he needs. This is not a need the dog should be obligated to make! He is trained to obey so he's not going to run off, that doesn't mean he likes it! sick sick dude!
angel
well angel um, he - was a she. hehehehehe I think anyway
um nope df, go back and read! He was a he! hehehehhehehehehe smiles- angel
Disgusting! I love my guide dog and all but I've never wanted to get it on with him!!!
Sex between a human and another animal is just so wrong!!! In this case, both "man" if that's what anyone really wants to call him, and dog are fortunate that they've not developed some unknown illness from this unnatural interaction between them.
If the guy wanted a little stimulation in the genital earia he should have invested in a dildo as apposed to "bonding" with the dog!!!
or a male version of a drilldo Lol :)
tipical societal unfounded retterick. Is it wrong? Yes? why? because it, it it, it just is! grrr! I understand not agreement but at least have factually based reasons for it!
the problem I have with this case is that there is certainly other cases of beastiality going on, but it's only the blindy that gets arrested because of the guide dog. and fab, also know where you are coming from? How come it's wrong? all I can say is that it's pretty uncommon and I guess, since sexual activity should have all parties agreeing, can't happen course if the dogs can't talk, right?! Lol
The title of the article should have been: BLIND MAN GETS LUCKY! lol lol lol Star
Lol.
hahahaha ah yeah pretty clever :) Lol haha
That is just so fucking sick, what kind of psycho would do that to a guide dog?