On Thursday, the 45-year-old Fairfield woman was arrested for violating her probation after witnesses said she had two pit bulls at her home. D'Urso surrendered Thursday at Superior Court after being told there was a warrant for her arrest. She later pleaded not guilty to the probation violation before Judge Earl Richards.
The judge continued the case to May 17. D'Urso is free after posting a $5,000 bond. On Oct.
25, 2006, D'Urso pleaded guilty to five counts of cruelty to animals and was sentenced by Judge Patrick Carroll to a suspended five-year term and three years of probation. As a condition of the probation, the judge ordered her not to have any animals in her care. "That means no animals of family members, no watching other people's animals, no animals of any kind,'' the judge stressed.
However, according to state probation officials, they received information March 22 that D'Urso had two pit bulls at her Eastfield Drive home. Probation officers said they went to D'Urso's home the following day, and while they did not see any dogs, they said there was a black cat there the entire time of their visit. D'Urso's conviction followed a July 27, 2006,
Police said D'Urso had taken in the dogs from animal shelters all over the country. Three puppies and one rabbit taken from D'Urso's home died, and three other puppies had to be euthanized because of poor health. The town of Fairfield later claimed it had spent more than $80,000 caring for the dogs taken from D'Urso.
But Judge Carroll ordered D'Urso to repay the town only $15,000. D'Urso had initially balked at paying the town, claiming she didn't have any money. But then it was disclosed that she had refinanced her home and used much of the money to buy a luxury sport utility vehicle.
News RSS