~ Update: December 14, 2022
59-years-old KAREN ANNETTE PLAMBECK (pictured), is facing additional charges after her arrest in August 2022, when Mercer County animal control rescued 198 dogs from her property in rural Sherrard.
On Monday, December 12, 2022, PLAMBECK was in court for her pre-trial conference and Mercer County State’s Attorney Grace Simpson said she was filing seven more counts of animal abuse against bringing the total to twelve counts of aggravated cruelty to animals.
PLAMBECK has pled not guilty to all the charges. If convicted, she could spend one to three years in jail on the animal abuse charges and two to five years for tampering with a witness in the case.
PLAMBECK’s next pre-trial conference is set for February 6, 2023, at 9:00 a.m.
On Friday, August 12, 2022, Mercer County Sheriff’s office arrested 59-years-old KAREN ANNETTE PLAMBECK (pictured), after animal control rescued 198 dogs from her property in rural Sherrard.
The dogs were found living in their fecal matter, with matted coats, dehydrated, and extremely skinny.
PLAMBECK was charged with three counts of aggravated cruelty to animals, a Class 4 felony punishable by one to three years in prison.
She was released after posting 10% of a $25,000 bond and court records show she had her first court appearance on Wednesday, August 17, 2022.
Prosecutors have rightfully asked a judge to permanently forfeit the dogs rescued from PLAMBECK’s home and Mercer County State’s Attorney Grace Simpson filed a petition on Tuesday, August 16, 2022.
According to court records, a petition hearing has been set for Tuesday, September 6, 2022, at 9:00 a.m.
A preliminary hearing is also scheduled to take place the same day.
KWQC reports that according to the petition, on August 10, 2022, a woman named Lauren Strickland of Watervliet, Michigan, called the Mercer County Animal Control Department to report that some of her Collies who had been sold to a person in South Carolina, never arrived and said that they were supposed to be transported by PLAMBECK. Strickland expressed concern for the welfare of the dogs.
An animal control officer went to PLAMBECK’s home and later returned with a search warrant.
At PLAMBECK’s home officials found 193 Collies, 3 Corgis, and 2 Pyrenees.
Some of the dogs had mange, maggots, parvo, and necrosis. None of them had access to water.
Two puppies were found with severe cases of sarcoptic mange. The contagious disease caused the puppies to itch uncontrollably and not eat, resulting in them being emaciated.
A Collie was found with a large skin ulcer that had underlying muscle necrosis and the wounds had a large amount of maggots. The furbaby could not stand on his/her own and was sadly euthanized.
A litter of puppies was also found to be parvo positive and another Collie was suffering from a chronic fracture of the tarsal joint.
According to QuadCities, Strickland was able to locate and get back four of her eight Collies. She later found out that one Collie was going to be kept by animal control, two were “shipped” by PLAMBECK to other states and were located, and two more are still missing. Strickland told QuadCities: “I have the two missing, Holly and Storm. We’re working on hiring a private investigator at this point because we just don’t know what else to do. We’re desperate for any information.”
On Thursday, September 1, 2022, PLAMBECK was arrested again for unlawful communication with a witness. Reportedly, PLAMBECK contacted the guardian of one of the dogs involved in the animal cruelty case.
As reported by KWQC, PLAMBECK has been charged with animal cruelty before.
In fact, in 2019, she was charged with cruel treatment of animals and four counts of unlawful inhumane care for animals.
Official documents obtained by KWQC show that PLAMBECK “allowed a halter to remain on a 2-year-old paint mare so long that the halter was embedded causing a necrotic area on the bridge of the horse’s nose.”
Documents further show that PLAMBECK additionally “failed to provide enough good quality, wholesome food to the same horse and several others.”
PLAMBECK “was later charged with disorderly conduct for breaching the peace by allowing her dogs to bark for hours on end”, stated the documents.
To this charge, PLAMBECK pleaded not guilty and she was sentenced to 24 months of court supervision.
As court records show, in a plea deal, PLAMBECK agreed to allow the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Illinois Department of Agriculture, or animal control to come onsite to check on the status of the animals.
Prosecutors dismissed the remaining charges against her.
This story nauseated me to my very core and made me break down in tears at the same time.
To know that there are soulless and heartless people who breed animals for profit speaks volumes about how we desperately and urgently need laws to put an end to this.
Innocent dogs have been bred, sold, transported, stolen, and shipped as if they were objects.
These VOICELESS VICTIMS have experienced stress, fear, exhaustion, and anxiety, only to end up in a hellish place confused and disoriented where they were not fed, watered, medically treated, or cared for!
Breeders, if you cannot make an honest living, sell yourselves!
Voice For Us Disclaimer: This story is sourced from official news outlets. Links included.
Details may be removed or additional information may be provided in future should such sources report an update.
