An Ohio lady who started Donald Trump’s wild and unfounded rumours about Haitian immigration has been arrested for murdering and eating a cat.
Allexis Ferrell, 27, was sentenced to 12 months in prison on Monday after pleading guilty to cruelty to companion animals, a fifth-degree felony. She received the maximum term, according to the Canton Repository.
The incident gained national attention as it was brought up by the President-elect and his running mate Vance during their campaign conversations regarding immigration.
“In Springfield [Ohio], they are eating the dogs,” Trump remarked during his discussion with Kamala Harris, reiterating erroneous accusations about Haitian migrants. “They’re eating—they are eating the pets of the people that live there.”
Springfield is around 170 miles from Canton, and Ferrell is a US citizen.
At Monday’s sentencing, Judge Frank Forchione stated that Ferrell had “embarrassed this nation.” “I can’t explain the regret, shock, and disgust that this atrocity has caused me. “I don’t know what would make anyone want to eat a cat,” he stated.
“You have shamed this country. You’ve shamed this country. Most significantly, you have embarrassed yourself.
“To me, you pose a significant threat to our community. This is repugnant to me; I mean, who would do this to an animal? And an animal resembles a child. I’m not sure if you understand that or not.”
He added, “They provide a lot of love to a lot of people. They do not have a voice. But their only voice today is mine, and I intend to use it loudly.
Ferrell had earlier pleaded not guilty due to insanity, but a competency study from Akron’s Psycho-Diagnostic Clinic determined she could understand the court proceedings. She pleaded guilty on Monday, according to the Repository.
Ferrell was arrested on August 16 for animal cruelty charges. In an incident report, authorities claimed that Ferrell “smashed the cat’s head with her foot and then began to eat the cat.” An officer also saw that she had blood on her feet and fur on her lips.
Bodycam footage from the event shows officers berating her, calling her actions “ridiculous.” “If you kill a cat, you don’t go to the hospital, you go to jail,” says one.
However, following the event, the footage was shared online under the fictitious title “Haitian Woman East Neighbor’s Cat in Springfield.”
The Springfield Police Department later denied the viral claims, and the Associated Press confirmed Ferrell was born in Ohio and graduated from Canton McKinley High School in 2015.