A Kauai circuit judge has sentenced one of two men charged with killing a domesticated goat at a dairy.
Judge Kathleen Watanabe ordered Ryan Jacob Winchell to pay about $8,800 in restitution to Kauai Kunana Dairy on Wednesday for shooting the goat Kaitlyn in April 2011.
Watanabe also sentenced Winchell to 30 days in jail but credited him with the 56 days he had been in custody, meaning he will serve no more jail time.
Winchell pleaded guilty tofirst-degree theft of livestock and a firearm charge, Class C felonies that each carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. He also pleaded guilty to second-degree animal cruelty, a misdemeanor.
At sentencing, Winchell apologized to the dairy owners, blaming his alcohol and drug addiction for his actions. He also said that he thought his neighbor, co-defendant Russell Kekoa Hoomanawanui, was taking him hunting.
Dairy co-owner Louisa Wooton said, "I accept the apology, but I don’t necessarily accept his excuses for what he did. I don’t buy any of that."
Kaitlyn, almost 4, was due to give birth to two kids when she was shot and slaughtered.
At Winchell’s sentencing, Wooton said Kaitlyn was considered a working animal who generated $7,000 per year for their business from the milk she produced, which was made into goat cheese and other products.
Hoomanawanui, 31, who pleaded guilty to second-degree property damage, theft of livestock and second-degree animal cruelty, is scheduled to be sentenced June 12.
