Attorney allegedly throws his wife's dogs over balcony: "You love your dogs more than you love me."
An Illinois attorney allegedly threw his wife's dogs over a balcony during an argument, killing one of them, police said.
Jerald Jeske, 51, yelled "You love your dogs more than you love me," as he tossed two elderly Chihuahuas from a second-story terrace in Chicago, according to police.
The eldest dog, age 17, died. The other dog, age 14, ran off and hasn't been found.
Officers answering a domestic battery call were told by Jeske's wife that the couple had argued in a car returning from a holiday party, and that he had slapped her twice, police said. Jeske allegedly took her keys and went into the home after telling her, "I'm going to kill those dogs," authorities said.
Jeske was arrested and charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, Chicago Police Department spokesman Howard Ludwig told InsideEdition.com Thursday. He is being held on $10,000 bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for Monday.
Appearing before a judge on Wednesday, Jeske said he could not post bond because he only had $80 in his possession, the Chicago Sun Times reported. He said he had asked for representation from a law firm where he used to work, but no one had come to court, he told the judge, according to the paper.
Jeske works for a Houston energy trading firm.
Prosecutor Erin Antonietti described the events leading to the dogs being hurled from the balcony, saying Jeske had allegedly locked the door behind him after taking his wife's keys. After she retrieved a spare key from a neighbor, she heard one of her dogs "screeching" in the back yard, Antonietti said. The elder Chihuahua was on the ground, still breathing but badly bleeding, with one eye dislodged from its socket, the prosecutor said.
Jeske's wife carried the dog to its bed, where it died shortly after police arrived, according to Antonietti.
Home surveillance cameras captured Jeske throwing the animals, the prosecutor said in court, according to the Chicago paper.
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