INVESTIGATING THE ABUSE OF PATRICK

Cheryl Hanna of the Pet Rescue Examiner had a fascinating interview with Mark Ortman, a security guard at the Garden Spires apartment complex.  AKA the place where the soulless Kisha Curtis lived and starved her 1-year-old Pit Bull now known as Patrick.

According to Ortman, the accused (I try not to use her name because then we assume she is human…and she is not) kept Patrick tied up in the stairwell of her complex and claims to have fed him every couple of days. The first time Ortman saw Patrick was several months ago when he was still a playful puppy and was kept in the stairwell because “the accused” claimed the Pit had repeatedly bitten her (I grow to like Patrick more every day).  She was told by Animal Control that she could not keep a dog tethered in the hallway.  That was supposedly the last time Ortman saw Patrick until the story broke. 

“The accused” lives in a 550 unit complex and evidently there is some sort of security staff that patrols the large apartment building.  So…the story becomes more interesting…or sad…depending on which way you want to view it.  How many people must have walked past Patrick these last few months?  It was horrific enough when we thought she kept him confined in the filth and darkness of her apartment.  A dirty little secret kept hidden like that of a crackwhore creeping in and out of crack houses looking for their next score.  But now we know the abuse was in open view of a 550 unit complex.  How many times did this “security officer” pass this dog before coming forward to the police with this information “after” the reward was offered.  The following is a quote from Ortman:

“Kisha Curtis lived in subhuman conditions when I went to her place. The front door was barely on its hinges, and the apartment was virtually unlivable. Human Services has been at her apartment, security visits, domestic violence issues and the Division of Family Services were there many times. It hardly made sense she would have been taking care of a dog, but I had no legal grounds to do anything, except I never forgot the look in that puppy’s face when I left.”

How many people and organizations had passed Patrick while investigating the countless accusations against “the accused?”  How many times had Ortman also passed the Pit tethered in a stark hallway with no food or water and ribs protruding like a carcass picked clean of its flesh. 

Ortman claims to have reported “the accused” because of his love for animals.  I personally find this hard to believe since he came forward only AFTER the reward was offered.

I have often wondered since this story broke why none of “the accused” friends ever came forward to help Patrick.  Now the story is much more disturbing because neither friends, officials, nor neighbors made the decision that Patrick’s life was worth saving.  I’m glad I don’t live in the 550 unit complex. I’m glad my workload isn’t so overloaded that the thought of helping a helpless tethered dog doesn’t even register on my compassion radar. 

You can read Cheryl Hanna’s full interview here:

http://www.examiner.com/pet-rescue-in-national/investigating-the-abuse-of-starving-nj-pit-bull-named-patrick