Monticello, NY - On March 7, 2025, Sullivan County District Attorney Brian P. Conaty announced that a Sullivan County Grand Jury returned a True Bill of Indictment charging Rawle Reynolds, 34, of Brooklyn, with Aggravated Cruelty to Animals, a Class E Felony, for intentionally choking and striking his three-month old American pit bull/terrier mix, Cassidy, with a sharp object thereby causing a large laceration reaching the dog’s skull. Reynolds’ maximum exposure under the law is two years’ incarceration in the Sullivan County Jail.
Reynolds was arrested on December 9, 2024, and was arraigned on this indictment by Sullivan County Court Judge James R. Farrell on March 7, 2025. At arraignment, Reynolds was remanded to the Sullivan County Jail in lieu of $25,000 cash, $75,000 insurance company bond, or $150,000 partially secured bond. Monetary bail is authorized for Reynolds as a result of his two prior felony convictions. This investigation was led by the Village of Monticello Police Department with the assistance of the Town of Thompson Dog Control Officer Joanne Gerow. Reynolds is next scheduled to appear in County Court on April 30, 2025.
The filing of an indictment is a mere accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
