Kevin Powers no longer has his job at the County jail after patrons at The Dock reported that they saw him brutally drop-kick 18 year old beloved restaurant mascot cat Dockette last week when she hissed at his dog. Dockette is being cared for by a restaurant employee.
Dockette, resting at the home of The Dock bartender Frances Hunter after her ordeal.
Dockette is a well known and beloved senior kitty who showed up at waterfront restaurant The Dock a month after it opened 17 years ago. The Dock is on Lake Greenwood, in tiny Waterloo, SC.
Last Saturday night, July 14, 24 year old Kevin Powers went out on the restaurant’s back deck with his dog, which was allowed, since The Dock is pet friendly. Dockette went up to the dog and reportedly hissed, at which point multiple eyewitnesses say Powers picked her up and drop kicked her over a table full of people, and she made a very hard landing on the deck floor.
A post from the Only at the Dock Facebook page was reposted at the Jake the Community Garden Cat page the following day:
“Only at the DOCK”
Tonight one of our customers on our outside deck drop kicked our resident 18 year old cat 25 feet in the air! She was kicked over a table of regular customers, then hit the deck hard! There were numerous witnesses.
“Dockette” is very seriously injured. I’m just sick, as are many of our customers and members of The Julius Cobb Band, who were playing. The incident is so uncalled for and I am very seriously considering filing charges against the guy who did it. Please keep our beloved cat in your prayers.
Bartender Frances Hunter, who is now caring for Dockette at her home, found the injured cat hiding under the dock later that night. She took Dockette to the emergency vet early Sunday morning, but was told the cat was too old for surgery, and has failing kidneys and leg injuries. Dockette’s condition has improved somewhat in the following days.
Restaurant management did not have to make the decision to contact authorities, because several patrons who witnesses the incident all called it in on Monday, July 16. By Tuesday, Powers had been arrested by Laurens County deputies and charged with cruelty to animals. The incident report says Dockette was kicked over a balcony. Powers, a resident of Greenwood, the adjacent town to Waterloo, was released the same day on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond. Stipulations of the bond state that he may not enter the premises of The Dock and may not bother the victim in any way.
Powers’ version of the incident is that Dockette attacked his dog so he gave her a little shove.
Greenwood County Sheriff Tony Davis confirmed that Powers worked as a jailer at the Greenwood County Detention Center. Davis suspended Powers upon the latter’s arrest arrest. As of Friday morning, Sheriff Davis said he made his decision about Powers’ continued employment based on the County’s investigation, and Powers no longer works for the Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office.
Great he was caught and he gets what he deserves!
what is wrong with people?????
TERRIBLE!!!!…and he’s lucky that he was around the bunch that he was cause I would have lifted my chair right over his head. I hope he loses his job and everything he has & get community service helping abused animals and cleaning their poop!!!
Thank goodness they knew who this idiot was and that he was arrested AND lost his job. I’m so happy more of these creeps are being held accountable for these cruel acts. Things seem to be changing for the better as far as animal rights are concerned. I hope Dockette recovers from her injuries very soon and has some more happy years.
SUN JULY 22 ’12 What has happened to the slime !! IS VERY HEART WARMING … How swiftly that he has lost his job… the interuption to his … I hope Dockette is comfortable as she recovers……… VANCOUVER BC CANADA
I have just done some distance healing work with dear, little Dockette, hoping it will help her recover fully. PLEASE keep everyone informed as to how she’s doing…and other than through FB.
I also wish her current guardian would SERIOUSLY consider getting her some animal chiropractic &/or acupuncture if at all possible, as well as other alternative healing methods like hiring a respected vet trained in homeopathy for animals (e.g. Dr. Don Hamilton, DVM; works via phone, so no travel req’d), since she’s not a good candidate (or so they think) for surgery (which suggests she may NEED something more to heal). All the offers to fund vet bills for Dockette could get her these aids. She can’t just be left to suffer with her injuries, OR her kidney condition! And she’s not “too old” for help from these other modalities.
I worry for that slimeball’s own dog as well…one can only imagine what he may have done/be doing to him/her. That, too, should be fully investigated, and his dog re-homed to a loving human/family, with a concurrent ban on him “owning” any animals ever again. Am pleased he at least lost his job (as consequence/karma from his actions), but am not holding my breath as to any “animal abuse” sentencing being meaningful, since they most often aren’t anywhere near what these criminals deserve for their crimes.
– AB, Canada