BRANDI LEE JACOBS and JOSE BARTOLO MARTINEZ JR arrested - Thirty-eight malnourished and sickly dogs rescued from an Oroville home – One puppy found dead

- California, USA -

On July 23, 2025, an Oroville Police officer was flagged down by a concerned resident near the 300 block of Fallbrook Avenue. The resident alerted the officer to the welfare of several dogs living at a nearby home, and was worried that the dogs were being kept in “dangerously substandard conditions”, said Oroville police.

The officer immediately responded to the home in question to conduct a welfare check and made contact with the tenant, 42-year-old BRANDI LEE JACOBS (pictured).

According to the press release by Oroville police, as soon as JACOBS opened the door, “the officer was met with an overwhelming odor and observed visibly distressing conditions inside the home.”

Worrying about the animals’ safety, the officer entered the home which was filled with heaps of trash, animal feces, tar, and insects. The officer then located dozens of dogs. Some of them were roaming freely in the backyard, others were crammed into kennels. According to police, many were stacked to the ceiling and living in their own waste.

Sadly, one puppy was found lifeless inside a crate in JACOBS’ bedroom.

In coordination with the Northwest SPCA, thirty-eight (38) dogs were rescued in an operation that took over five hours to complete.

According to the press release by the Butte County District Attorney’s Office, all thirty-eight living dogs appeared to be malnourished and sickly and many of them had visible skin conditions and signs of severe neglect.

Police also called in the City of Oroville Code Enforcement Department, and its officers began assessing the home for health and safety violations, and initiated the process to red tag the property.

On July 24, 2025, JACOBS was taken into custody and booked into the Butte County Jail on seventy-eight (78) felony counts of animal cruelty/abuse and five (5) misdemeanor counts of animal torture, said Oroville police.

The Department later advised that a second arrest was made in connection with this case and through an updated Facebook post, police said they also arrested JACOBS’ husband, 42-year-old JOSE BARTOLO MARTINEZ (also pictured).

On July 28, 2025, JACOBS appeared in Butte County Superior Court to face thirty-nine (39) counts of animal cruelty, announced the Butte County District Attorney’s Office in a press release.

Butte County District Attorney Michael L. Ramsey said that JACOBS and MARTINEZ “were each charged jointly with 39 felony counts of animal cruelty for failing to provide the dogs in their care with proper food, drink, shelter, and protection from the weather, which caused needless suffering.”

JACOBS was arraigned, assigned a public defender, and ordered back to court for further arraignment and entry of plea on July 31, 2025. She was then remanded to the Butte County Jail, where she is being held in lieu of $585,000 bail.

Butte County District Attorney Ramsey explained in the press release that both JACOBS and MARTINEZ “were arrested on July 24, 2025, by Oroville officers based on the initial findings of the Northwest SPCA and the veterinarian. Both were booked into the Butte County Jail, but a paperwork error, caused Martinez to be released from the jail on July 25, 2025, before the case was sent to the District Attorney’s Office. Ramsey said the Oroville police are working on a corrected warrant to get Martinez back in custody.”

The furvictims were taken to a local veterinarian to be examined and the veterinarian determined that all were suffering from malnourishment, and some were suffering from various respiratory, skin, or urinary infections. According to the Butte County District Attorney’s Office, they all are expected to recover.

I took the liberty of naming the deceased puppy Cotton for the tribute image. Should his/her given name be made public, I will rectify it accordingly.

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Voice For Us Disclaimer: This story is sourced from the press releases by the Oroville Police Department and the Butte County District Attorney’s Office. Please note that details may be removed or new information added should updates become available.

In the case of charges being dropped, dismissed, or the case being purged, this article will be rectified accordingly, if official documentation is provided to Voice For Us.

Mugshots via Butte County District Attorney’s Office

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