B.C. man jailed after killing kitten in 'torturous' attack that woke neighbour
Warning: This story contains disturbing details.
A B.C. man who admitted to attacking his pet kitten so brutally the animal had to be euthanized has been sentenced to spend four months behind bars.
Vancouver provincial court heard Yiming Zhu was in a state of "emotional maladjustment" due to social isolation and mental health pressures when he decided to punish his kitten for biting and scratching him in the early morning hours of May 20, 2021.
The violent outburst that ensued saw the defenceless animal swung by its tail, repeatedly smacked against concrete and stepped on, according to court documents posted online this week.
The kitten's cries were loud enough to awaken Zhu's neighbour, who called police – but the attack persisted, with Zhu "apparently callous to (the animal's) suffering," Judge Harbans Dhillon wrote in her June 29 decision.
"The time over which the kitten was brutalized was about 20 to 25 minutes, with stops and starts," Dhillon wrote.
"His conduct caused pain, fear and distress to the animal and can fairly be called torturous."
When police arrived, the kitten was alive but barely moving. Authorities took the animal to an emergency veterinary clinic, where it was determined to be too grievously injured for treatment.
The court heard Zhu moved to Canada from China with his mother at age 15 to complete high school and attend university. His mother returned to China a few years later, leaving Zhu living alone in the family's Vancouver home, where he experienced loneliness, feeling of depression and deteriorating mental health.
His loneliness is what led Zhu to adopt a young, five-pound kitten, according to the documents, but he was woefully ill-equipped to care for the animal.
"He had no prior exposure to domestic pets, which had never been permitted in the family home," Dhillon wrote.
"The kitten was supposed to be a companion but managing it added more stress in his life. His mounting frustrations with the kitten urinating and defecating in the house, and biting and scratching him, reached the point that he lashed out."
While he was found to be experiencing an adjustment disorder at the time of the attack, an assessment report conducted at the Vancouver Regional Forensic Clinic determined he was not suffering from a major mental illness such as clinical depression or psychosis.
The court heard Zhu's emotional maladjustment has since resolved. While awaiting trial he managed to graduate from university and successfully apply to a Master's program in the U.K.
The Crown recommended a jail term of six months, but Dhillon noted a number of mitigating factors in the case, including that Zhu had no criminal record and was cooperative with police, providing a "full and frank" account of what transpired.
"He appears to have gained insight into his offending behaviour. During his forensic interview he expressed his deep regret," Dhillon wrote, also noting Zhu was found to be a low risk to reoffend.
He further took responsibility by pleading guilty to willfully causing unnecessary pain, suffering or injury to an animal.
The judge sentenced Zhu to four months in jail, and banned him from "owning, having custody or control of, or residing in the same premises as an animal" for 25 years.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.