DEJEAN CORNELIUS BOWENS, former employee of Lazy Dog Crazy Dog - Ballard, accused of brutally assaulting a dog at the facility who later died

- Washington, USA -

~ Update: October 14, 2025:

I have reached out to Lazy Dog Crazy Dog – Ballard to inquire about their former employee DEJEAN CORNELIUS BOWENS. I was told in an email that “the employee involved in this incident had been with us for several years and had previously demonstrated strong performance, with no indications of potential misconduct. We are completely heartbroken and distraught over this event and we hope that the dog gets the justice they deserve.”

Stephen Biles, owner of Lazy Dog Crazy Dog has issued the following statement:

“Dear Lazy Dog Customers:

On August 3, our former night person physically abused one of our boarding dogs to the

point where he passed away a few hours later. The employee was terminated immediately,

and we began working with the police immediately.

We are heartbroken and outraged by this crime. We have been working actively with law

enforcement to ensure that justice is served for this dog. Now that this ex-employee has

been charged, we want to share with our community the steps we take to ensure safety of

dogs in our care.

First, we understand the immense responsibility entrusted to us when caring for the dogs

in our facility, and we take that duty very seriously. All of us have dogs ourselves. We work

here because we love dogs.

We operate cage-free 24 hours a day. That is a unique and different philosophy. Our

customers tell us that this is what they want. We care for dogs as family members in a

safe, open, loving environment.

That means that dogs are always with other dogs and with humans, so training and

education are ongoing priorities for our team.

Every new staff member completes an intensive internal training program focused on dog

behavior, safe handling techniques, and care standard, a program developed by a well-

respected dog behaviorist.

Beyond this, we ensure our staff are prepared for emergency situations by providing CPR

and Pet First Aid certification opportunities. As employees grow within our organization,

they receive additional training tailored to their roles, as well as ongoing performance

evaluations to uphold our standards of safety and care.

We are actively reviewing our hiring and training processes to identify any areas for

improvement. Our facilities have cameras, so dogs are on film all the time, and employees

are aware of this. We are working towards making our overnight cameras available to

customers. While we stay committed to strengthening our safeguards, we also recognize

that we cannot always foresee or prevent the independent, unacceptable actions of any

individual. The actions of this former employee are in complete violation of our values, our

mission, and the standard of care we have upheld for over 16 years while serving tens of

thousands of dogs. We will continue to support law enforcement and hope that justice is

served for the dog.

We appreciate that you might have questions, and we are happy to answer them. We want

you to be confident in our care, and we welcome the opportunity to talk further.”

~ Original story:

On September 29, 2025, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged DEJEAN CORNELIUS BOWENS with first-degree animal cruelty.

The charge relates to an incident that happened on August 3, 2025, while BOWENS was working at the boarding facility Lazy Dog Crazy Dog in the Ballard Neighborhood in Seattle.

That morning, at approximately 4:20, a black Labrador named Mitch who was boarding at the kennel, knocked something over and BOWENS became irritable, according to charging documents. BOWENS then intentionally kicked Mitch multiple times and punched him despite Mitch whimpering, crying in pain, and trying to hide under a table.

Surveillance cameras caught the incident.

BOWENS’ cruelty and evilness did not stop there. In fact, he did not immediately seek help and waited more than half an hour before reaching out to a coworker. At that point, Mitch's condition had declined. Mitch was taken to the Emerald City Emergency Clinic almost two hours after being assaulted.

Staff at the clinic told Seattle Police officers that when Mitch arrived, he was found to be mentally unresponsive with internal bleeding and suspected kidney rupture. Although veterinarians attempted CPR five times, they were unable to revive Mitch and he sadly lost his precious life.

Veterinarians told officers that if Mitch had been brought in immediately after the assault, he would have had a higher chance of survival.

Mitch had been dropped off at Lazy Dog Crazy Dog a few days prior, shortly before his human mom gave birth to her first baby. Mitch was supposed to be picked up by his family on August 3, when he was killed.

A Facebook post published by Lazy Dog Crazy Dog - Ballard on October 11, 2025, read:

“Dear Lazy Dog Customers:

Back on August 3, our former night person physically abused one of our boarding dogs to the point where he passed away a few hours later. The employee was terminated immediately.

The ex-employee was charged today. We have not commented publicly during this process out of respect for the ongoing investigation, but we want to be transparent with our community. We are heartbroken and outraged by what happened. The actions of this former employee are in complete violation of our values, our mission, and the standard of care we’ve upheld for over 16 years while serving tens of thousands of dogs. We continue to support law enforcement and hope that justice is served for the dog.

With heavy hearts,

The Lazy Dog Team”

Court records show that BOWENS is expected to appear in King County Superior Court in Seattle on October 13, 2025.

###

Voice For Us Disclaimer: 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.

For more animal cruelty stories, please click here. Thank you!