A man has been sentenced to 12 months' home detention for the "brutal death" of his own dog by hitting it with a metal baseball bat.

Jason Brian Townsend, 52, had pleaded not guilty to the charge of torture of an animal, but Magistrate John Arms found the offence proven in a defended hearing in Armidale Local Court on Friday, October 10.

Constable Sam Press of the Armidale Police gave evidence that he and another constable were on patrol around 2am on September 15, 2024, when they saw a man walking along Dumaresq Street carrying a bat.

Body-worn video was shown in which Townsend made frank admissions to police about hitting the red cattle dog named 'Tucker' with a bat.

Defence solicitor Nick Forrest argued the video evidence was improperly obtained, given Townsend was not formally caut

See Full Page