In breaking news we brought you last month, firefighters worked to put out flames inside ofanEast Medford home on Olympic Avenue.
Police say 27 year old Darryl Wayne Smith set his ex-girlfriend’s cat and rabbit on fire. The cat sustained injuries. The rabbit died.
Smith was charged with arson in the first degree and aggravated animal abuse.
And just recently, theJackson County District Attorney’sOffice added additional charges.
” What we did was add three burglary charges, two of those are based on arson, one of those is based on a theft, ” explained Mark Huddleston, District Attorney for Jackson County.
Smith pleaded ‘not guilty’ to new and previous charges related to the case.
“The arson charged filed in the original indictment was part of the amended indictment. Itis the most serious charge and is a measure 11 offense. That carries a 90 month mandatory minimum sentence,” said Huddleston.
Smith was released from jail on bond.
We asked theDistrict Attorneyif he had seen anything like what is being alleged, he said unfortunately, yes.
“You’ve seen that at the state and national level. It’s one way in that domestic abuse can happen,” explained Huddleston.
Officials did not know the exact date Smith would be back in court.
The case could takeuntil the end of the year to be finalized.
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