WETUMPKA, Ala. — Two Alabama women have been convicted of misdemeanor crimes because of their efforts to feed and trap stray cats.
Local news outlets report that Wetumpka Municipal Judge Jeff Courtney on Tuesday found Beverly Roberts, 85, guilty of criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct. Mary Alston, 61, was found guilty of criminal trespassing and interfering with governmental operations.
Courtney sentenced both women to 2 years of unsupervised probation and 10 days in jail. The jail sentence was suspended, meaning the women will serve no time. Each woman was also fined $100 and ordered to pay court costs.
BREAKING: Judge in Wetumpka, Alabama finds U.S. Army veteran Beverly Roberts, 85, and Mary Alston, 61, GUILTY of trespassing & disorderly conduct in connection to feeding & trapping cats (for neutering) on public property, which is not illegal.
— David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) December 13, 2022
The city found it be a nuisance. pic.twitter.com/hNY8RG8gCO
The verdicts followed a bench trial before Courtney in the town just north of Montgomery. Attorneys for the two women say they will appeal.
The women were arrested and taken to jail by police in Wetumpka in June. The police chief said the women had previously been warned not to feed stray animals.
Two retirees were told to stop feeding stray cats. An Alabama judge found them guilty on 4 charges. https://t.co/kdJ43aRRDp
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) December 14, 2022
Terry Luck, an attorney for one of the women, said earlier that the women were performing a public service by trapping stray cats and having them neutered and spayed.
Wetumpka Police Chief Greg Benton has said feeding the cats had created a nuisance because it attracted more animals to the area. He said both women had been “repeatedly” warned to stop prior to being arrested.
