Bastrop, Texas pastor charged with animal cruelty over death of neighbor's cat

[Ian David]

Posted on January 23, 2012 at 9:19 PM

Updated Tuesday, Jan 24 at 8:10 AM

BASTROP, Texas -- A Central Texas pastor is being accused of throwing a neighbor's cat off of a bridge.

Rick Bartlett, pastor of the Bastrop Christian Church, is facing animal cruelty charges. Bastrop Police Chief Michael Black said Bartlett admitted that he caught the cat, named Moody, in a trap on Sunday, Jan. 15. Bartlett told them that he was having a problem with feral cats in his garden.

Moody also told police that he had the cat in a cage in the back of his pick-up truck for three days and forgot about him until Tuesday, Jan. 17., when Bartlett brought the cat to police. An animal control officer noticed a name tag including the phone number of Moody’s owners, Sarah and Eddy Bell, on the cat's collar. The officer offered to take Moody back to his owners but police said Bartlett told them he’d take the cat back himself since they were his neighbors.

Later on the same day, a park visitor discovered Moody’s near lifeless body on the bank of the Colorado River, some 40-50 feet below a bridge.



More:
http://www.kvue.com/news/Bastrop-Pastor-charged-with-Cruelty-to-Animals-over-Neighbors-cat-death-137934273.html

[redqueen]

1. ...

senseless cruelty.

[hifiguy]

2. I don't know whether these awful animal cruelty stories

make me more angry or sad, because I am always plenty of both after reading them.

What a flaming shitheel this "pastor" is.

[Bluenorthwest]

3. I can not comment.

This is too much.

[ceile]

4. Saw that on the news.

The family is just devestated. Quote about their 5 year old:
“She also asked me where Moody is now and I said, 'Baby he's in Heaven,'" said Sarah. "She knows the man who did this is a pastor at the Bastrop Christian Church and she said, 'I don't believe in Heaven anymore, Moody's just dead.'”

Scum....

[Ian David]

7. Well, at least SOMETHING good came of it. n/t

[Justice wanted]

5. Words cannot EXPRESS my feelings that this ASS did to that poor thing. He calls himself a

"Christian"


I can't wait to hear the full story. SOMETHING tells me he doesn't like something about his neighbors and that's why he did it.

[mrs_p]

6. Not sure what I can say without lashing out senselessly.

This is purely and utterly tragic.

[thelordofhell]

8. See you in my house Pastor Bartlett

Where feral cats will eat your extremities for an Eternity.

[tledford]

9. This guy is truly a psychopath. eom

[Hulk]

10. Welcome to Texas....perry-land

Not a bit surprised. There are some really sick clowns in that state. I am honestly fearful driving through it, which I seem to have to do all too often, unfortunately.
There are some wonderful people there as well, of course; but some of the sickest, most red-neck idiots are from TX.

[elehhhhna]

14. oh stop

[MagickMuffin]

18. Oh really, and what great and wonderful state are you living in?

I bet it has just as many sick clowns and probably some of the sickest, most red-neck idiots also live in your state.

[Paladin]

66. Thank You Ever So Much For Your Kind Thoughts About My State Of Texas.

And a special thanks for your acknowledgement of there being "....some wonderful people there as well, of course." How kind, how downright gracious of you to give some indication that a handful of we "perry-landers" are not cat murderers. Yor tolerance and forbearance are appreciated more than you can ever imagine by those very, very, very few decent citizens, doomed to dwell in such a hellish, blighted place as Texas (Austin and Austin alone being excluded, as usual). It is my personal prayer that you do not have to subject yourself to any future drive-throughs, and God Speed, if you do.

Your Obedient Servant,

Paladin
Regrettably, a Fifth-Generation Texan

[cantbeserious]

76. Agreed - Born And Raised In Texas - Some Seriously Sick Mental Cases There

eom

[KamaAina]

11. Bad week for cats

at least those who owned Dems.

[ScreamingMeemie]

77. I know. That little one reminds me so much of Izzie.

[Initech]

12. What a POS. That family should sue that church into the ground.

[Ilsa]

13. Maybe they cat owners can

poison the pastor's plants (garden) and blame it on god.

Sometimes a little revenge can be satisfying.

[lonestarnot]

15. Fuckwad!

[undergroundpanther]

16. I'd

like to toss pastor cat murderer asshole over that bridge,and laugh when his 'god' lets him suffer and die. Some "pastors" are sociopath monsters.Hiding behind jesus's skirt.

[LadyHawkAZ]

17. Who Would Jesus Throw Off A Bridge?

Asshole.

[SammyWinstonJack]

70. Hopefully, that 'pastor'. He certainly deserves to be thrown off a bridge.

[newspeak]

72. not only is this man a cruel cretin

he is a liar if he told the police he would return the cat to this neighbors. I wouldn't trust him and I can't believe this man is a minister.

[jsmirman]

19. Why can't you go to the big house for this?

what could be a more unrepentantly shitty thing to do than this?

And like I've said before, there would be a church looking for a new fucking pastor if this happened to my guy (who looks heartbreakingly like Moody). I'm sorry if this is extreme, but I would sodomize that fucker, tell him he was now unclean, and remind him, just before I ripped the last life from his battered body, that this means that he's going to hell. With the other sodomites.

A pastor! That church should be letter bombed - I'd like to know how his congregation feels about having such a piece of shit for a pastor.

[LiberalAndProud]

20. Why did he take the cat to the cops?

Why didn't he read the tags himself? There is something really strange about this, beyond the heartless cruelty.

[Justice wanted]

22. He claimed his yard was being ruin by Feral cats. He was hoping they would treat it as such and

destroy it! It sounds like he had something against the family.

[newspeak]

74. if you're worried about feral cats

a little cayenne pepper goes a long way. He saw that tag on the cat, probably knew it belonged to his neighbor. I guess this is one pastor that believes humans are superior and all animals are for humans to mistreat-they are not god's creatures, they are just things to be used and killed; of course, that's after you let them suffer for awhile.

[arely staircase]

21. uh, i guess this is a typo?

Bastrop Police Chief Michael Black said Bartlett admitted that he caught the cat, named Moody, in a trap on Sunday, Jan. 15

Moody also told police that he had the cat in a cage in the back of his pick-up truck for three days and

[OriginalGeek]

24. Decent human beings do not throw cats off bridges

Decent human beings do not defend people who do.

Doesn't even matter how or why this "pastor" came to be in possession of the cat.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

26. Whatever.

Who do you think you're kidding here? I mean really?

Oh, and welcome to DU.

[yewberry]

28. I beg your fucking pardon?

This asshole knowingly trapped his neighbor's cat, kept it caged, unfed & outside, for days, and then threw it off a bridge.

Is it irresponsible to allow companion animals to run around unsupervised? Well, yes it is. However, it does not rise to the level of torturing and killing an innocent animal. NO WAY.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

25. "I don't believe in Heaven anymore, Moody's just dead."

What an evil POS. How dare he take that away from a child? It's like telling a child you shot Santa Clause. 11 years this pet was a part of their family. What a horrific person this man is.

Thanks for posting this. I know some people there and I will do all I can draw attention to this matter.

[Woodsman001]

27. You Doubt?

If you doubt what I say is true .... how long did that pastor have that cat? Why didn't the Bell family even call animal-control to find out if their cat got picked up? Why didn't the animal-control officers respond with "Oh! They've been calling about this cat!"

THEY DIDN'T CARE ABOUT THAT CAT UNTIL IT WAS DEAD AND THEN THEY COULD USE THAT CAT'S DEATH TO MANIPULATE EVERYONE IN THEIR COMMUNITY -- and now YOU.

Catching on yet?

[OriginalGeek]

29. Conspiracy theories now. Hmmmmmmm....

What an evil plot that Bell family has perpetrated on the good cat throwing citizens of Bastrop!

[MelungeonWoman]

31. If they didn't care it wouldn't have a tag.

Pastor Bartlett will very soon be catching on to the fact that a lot of folks don't particularly like animal abusers.

[Woodsman001]

34. TAGS REQUIRED BY LAW

Tags are no proof that they cared about that cat.

[dionysus]

73. sleep well, sweet, sweet prince.

[pinboy3niner]

78. :)

[LiberalAndProud]

56. Fascinating! Without you I would never have known of this villainous conspiracy.

Tell me, what are your thoughts regarding chem trails? I must know!

[LiberalAndProud]

58. I guess that's a never to be answered question. :sigh:

Farewell, Woodsman. Take a few of these with you,

http://www.catfaeries.com/crystals.html

because you just never know when you might need them.

[pinboy3niner]

62. Don't worry. I'm calling Congress.

RIGHT FUCKING NOW!

[jsmirman]

63. Man, you disrupted poorly

get the fuck out of here motherfucker.

How the hell do you know what they were doing during those three days?

What kind of sick fuck like you trolls like this about a poor defenseless animal and gets off on defending an asshole who kept a house cat locked up in a cage with no food in his house truck for three days? Go fuck yourself and then live with yourself because you are obviously one terrific piece of shit.

Tombstone this asshole, we should have no patience for this brand of jerkoff.

[Rex]

69. +1

[OriginalGeek]

32. Pastor Bartlett, Do you need a cookie?

Would that make you feel better? Perhaps a pill of some sort? Maybe a pinch on the cheek to help you wake up from this crazy dream you are in?

[OriginalGeek]

36. lol!

you are a hoot!

But I'm not the one accusing the Bell family of perpetrating fraud on their town and not caring about their cat so they could garner sympathy and somehow tying that to people trying to steal your land.

[countryjake]

54. A popular control method? What are you so mad about?

[pinboy3niner]

61. Shhhh! General Calico has ordered DefCon 3, I repeat, DefCon 3!

Operation Catnip has been moved up with the deployment of the 49th Feline Heavy Weapons Cattalion and the 76th Feline Freeranger Cattalion, supported by the 101st Hairball Artillery.

Top officials at the Catagon are confident that the objective will be taken and victoy will be ours!

(This is strictly TOP SECRET, so keep it under your cat!)

[Rex]

68. Crazy is as crazy does.

And evidently crazy posts too...

[Aerows]

83. I'd just like to state

Holy Shit. That's got to be the biggest pile of crazy I've ever heard. People assembling cat armies and deploying them to take over other people's property.

Is this guy the next Jared Loughner, because he sounds just as unhinged as that nut job did when posting on the internet. The real peach was later in the thread equating cats to people in the Middle East. I hope to GOD someone in his family intervenes and gets him the medication and treatment he CLEARLY needs. I'm just THRILLED imagining this delusional person running around with guns.

[yewberry]

35. I'm sorry to report that you fail.

As fascinating as this is as a case study, you haven't made a single reasonable point.

You seem to asserting that cat-lovers (and please, go find a dictionary and look up 'oxymoron') are assembling cat armies bent on 'usurping and stealing others' property.' Mercenary, expendable cats soldiers lawlessly taking over and ruining your life by pooping on your lawn? Really?

Reposting your final paragraph, which sums up your position:
"They can't be stopped from their behavior. They psychotically believe they are doing "god's work" for themselves. So you must destroy their cats. It's the ONLY solution."

You should consider seeking help. Professional help.

Disclaimer: I do not have any cats.

[OriginalGeek]

38. ANd how in the hell does any of that relate

to a preacher throwing a family pet off a bridge?

Are you just mad because it almost landed on you under there?


ps: I can has popcorn.gif?

[OriginalGeek]

43. lmao! Broski, I've been on the internet a long time

You are gonna have to try a lot harder than that.

[Ruby the Liberal]

50. Yep. Its :popcorn:

[OriginalGeek]

53. cool!

thanks!

[yewberry]

40. Oh, I see, attempting to make a cogent point now, are we?

Cats allowed to roam free are particularly dangerous to songbirds and small animals. That is absolutely the case.

That however, is a markedly different argument than "Greedy, evil cat-lovers are stealing my property." Also not the same as defending some piece of garbage torturing and killing an innocent animal.

So, which is it?

(Oh, and the 'pathetically ignorant dipshit' thing... you might also consider reading DU's community standards after you're done checking out the definition of oxymoron, FYI.)

[OriginalGeek]

44. arrrr!

[Ruby the Liberal]

49. Thank you for your patience and your humor.

In reading this thread, "die", "miserably" "fucking" and "fire" were the only words that came to mind, so thanks for addressing this.

[OriginalGeek]

55. You're quite welcome

[yewberry]

45. Oxymoron:

ox·y·mo·ron
   [ok-si-mawr-on, -mohr-] Show IPA
noun, plural ox·y·mo·ra  [ok-si-mawr-uh, -mohr-uh] Show IPA, ox·y·mor·ons. Rhetoric .
a figure of speech by which a locution produces an incongruous, seemingly self-contradictory effect, as in “cruel kindness” or “to make haste slowly.”


oxymoron (ˌɒksɪˈmɔːrɒn) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]

— n , pl -mora
rhetoric an epigrammatic effect, by which contradictory terms are used in conjunction: living death ; fiend angelical

Definition of OXYMORON
: a combination of contradictory or incongruous words (as cruel kindness); broadly : something (as a concept) that is made up of contradictory or incongruous elements

These are oxymorons:
Original copy
Living dead
Open secret
Jumbo shrimp

"Cat-lover" does not meet this definition.

[Are_grits_groceries]

46. Dear Woodsman001,

I doubt if this will make any difference, but I strongly suggest that you refrain from direct, personal attacks. Either you are incapable of expressing yourself in a reasonable manner or you have anger management issues. There is another possibility, and that is that you are deliberately being as rude as you can be because you are goading people and want to see what you can get away with.

No matter what the reason, it would behoove you to try to be as respectful as possible to people on this board. If not, I don't think your time here will be extensive. Showing respect is more of a reflection about your character than it is about who you how respect to.

I could answer you the way you have addressed others. That would require that I lower my grammar and vocabulary to an unacceptable level. It would only give you satisfaction to find me at your level.

Enjoy your stay here, bless your heart.

[jsmirman]

64. I did - consider me goaded

fuck him and fuck this pastoral piece of shit excuse for a human being.

That monster in Bastrop needs to be put down - and whoever this chump is, I'd like him to kindly take his squirrel nutty ass elsewhere.

[Warren DeMontague]

47. Sea Kelp.

Seriesly.

[Ruby the Liberal]

48. WTF?

Are you for real?

[Tsiyu]

51. This is some classic DU shit here....

They don't care about your life nor any other animals at all, not even their own cats. They only care about what they can accomplish for themselves with their cats. Proved time and time and time again and again. They only want to control and ruin your life with their cats.

[OriginalGeek]

52. lol!

[Ruby the Liberal]

57. New member, 9 posts, 7 of which hidden by juries in 1 thread alone.

That has to be some kind of record.

[countryjake]

60. Seriously considering the possibility...

that it may actually be Rick Bartlett?

Bizarre anger over this one topic...wonder why?

[Ruby the Liberal]

65. Yanno, I would love to think that

because my mind is challenged trying to process that there would be someone to defend and promote that vile fuck, but post #33 doesn't seem to gel with the actual guy, seen here: http://bastropcc.org/#/about-us/pastor

[Warren DeMontague]

86. New member, basically advocating felicide.

nuts with a capital nuts.

[alphafemale]

59. Epic. Classic troll meltdown.

[Rex]

67. "Classic troll meltdown"

Teh kettah armies assemble at dawn!

[Rex]

71. It is TRUE! Teh Kettah Katt army assembles at dawn!

I LOVE controlling an ruining others lives with my 4 cats!!! They said I will be given a pretty high rank in the new Kitty Katt Assault Squad! They said I would be the 'head tuna'! SERIES!!!!

[smokey nj]

75. I thoroughly enjoy my work with the indoor kitteh LOLcats psy-ops brigade.

Think all those cute kitteh pictures and videos on the internets is a coincidence? Think again.

[Rex]

80. True! Their 'cute' factor will allow them access

to even the most secure places in America! Who can deny THIS cat anything...just LOOK at those eyes!


"Can I please take over the planet...and eats a cheezburger?"

[smokey nj]

81. No one can resist those kitty eyes.

[gulliver]

79. I don't let my cats outdoors.

There are all kinds of reasons not to do it. It shortens their lifespans, recruits fleas, and results in the needless killing of birds and other animals. When you let your cat out in residential area, you are gambling with its life and taking a liberty with other people's property. Sometimes the gamble doesn't pay off.

I think the Bartlett guy obviously deserves punishment, maybe a lawsuit too. But the cat's owners also have a share of the responsibility.

[jsmirman]

82. The guy crossed from addressing a problem to WANTON animal cruelty

My cat doesn't go outside unsupervised, either. It's an almost 100% stable environment - should anything arise, I'm there to let any unexpected element know that I am the biggest, baddest part of any equation. Nothing has ever gone wrong.

But leaving a cat in a cage with no food or water for three days? WANTON ANIMAL CRUELTY.

At least under a "res ipsa loquitur" viewpoint, the cat ending crushed on the rocks below? WANTON ANIMAL CRUELTY.

And the way it sounds, this "Pastor" is on the hook, as the animal was entrusted to his care.

This is the kind of crap that needs to put someone in jail for two solid years. When we start treating this stuff seriously, we let people know this stuff is serious. It's a fucking life, damnit. And I can't write what my feelings are about the life that beats within that Godless devilspawn of a "pastor."

If someone hasn't already, PLEASE, SOMEONE SET 4CHAN ON HIS ASS. Not a part of the internet I frequent, but from what I understand, they seem to be damn effective in this regard. And if they are, unleash those motherfucking hounds.

[aquart]

84. What is the penalty for animal cruelty in Bastrop?

Mine would be prolonged and extensive.

[Warren DeMontague]

85. I figured out why this news story was confusing the crap out of me, finally. Woulda seen it sooner

were it not for the flat-out absurdly ridiculous trollosity in this thread, which has been already attended to at length.

I swear, I had to read this story four or five times, because it didn't make any sense.

Rick Bartlett, pastor of the Bastrop Christian Church, is facing animal cruelty charges. Bastrop Police Chief Michael Black said Bartlett admitted that he caught the cat, named Moody, in a trap on Sunday, Jan. 15. Bartlett told them that he was having a problem with feral cats in his garden.

Moody also told police that he had the cat in a cage in the back of his pick-up truck for three days and forgot about him until Tuesday, Jan. 17., when Bartlett brought the cat to police. An animal control officer noticed a name tag including the phone number of Moody’s owners, Sarah and Eddy Bell, on the cat's collar. The officer offered to take Moody back to his owners but police said Bartlett told them he’d take the cat back himself since they were his neighbors.

No, no. Moody was the cat. Moody the cat did not speak to the police posthumously. Now I get it it.

[pinboy3niner]

87. Moody's testimony is sure to be cathartic

Good thing our troll didn't catch on to the cat giving a statement to the police. More evidence for his catspiracy theory, lol!

[Warren DeMontague]

88. That guy was way over the top, even for an obvious troll

The cats! the cats! They're always plotting.. coming onto my property... watching me.. waiting... planning, ever planning...

[countryjake]

89. Besides his obsession with the furry felines...

the kerap he was saying about the underlying motives of feral cat rescuers, comparisons to "uneducated" inner-city youth and "rock-throwing" in the ME ... it was disturbing to watch that guy in action, and even more disturbing to wonder what sort of damage he really does in his own neighborhood.
Cat armies, at the woodsman's mercy.

I read a bit at Huff Post about the Moody murder case and clicked on to other links, where members of the guy's congregation appear to be waging a biblical defense of the pastor's cruelty, online. Some pretty nasty, off-the-wall stuff directed at other commenters, too, so even tho our troll claimed to have proof of his heathenism (whatever that could have been), I still think he may have had ties to the actual case, somehow.

[Warren DeMontague]

91. Oh, boy

that's creepy.

[Ruby the Liberal]

90. That is priceless!

And I can just see them doing it, too.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

92. I had to reply to the kvue thread....I'm so sick of these christofascists

This scum of the earth is a PASTOR. That means, not that he is a "man of god" (for those who believe in an anthropomorphized authoritarian diety), but that he CONNED people into ELEVATING him to a higher status, sanctified and licensed to lecture them on how to live and be properly obedient. That's some EGO, right there. Cruelty, ego, poor impulse control, acting out, disregard for others, acting out, lack of conscience, control issues=Small town pastor, perfect job for a sociopath.

it is SO easy for truly sick people to take on some mantle of power by means of these FUCKWAD FUNDIE EVANGELICAL churches.

There is nothing "godly" about them, they are wholly a creation of people...people taking power over other people to make people serve the ideology. Religion should be the other way around---to SERVE people and help us navigate in the real world; to grow and improve ourselves, to honor and bring forth our best self.

I have known too many sick fucks using small town small church positions of small power--power to preach to others, which they positively EAT UP. Never mind that they are selfish, twisted, hateful and/or ignorant in their daily lives.

The mark of a truly good person is in how they treat other people and living creatures, not in how well they turn a FUCKING BABLE BIBLE PHRASE! (excuse me for screaming.)

Speaking of the "sacred", the "holy", the "sanctified", raising human belief and behavior to some intimate connection with a concept of divinity is a magic potion inviting abuse of power, lies, oppression, ignorance and a sea of other evils into our daily lives and giving it the veil of normalcy.