Woman charged with animal cruelty after over 70 mistreated cats found in U-Haul

A woman has been charged with animal cruelty after 73 cats — dead, malnourished and one half-eaten — were found in her U-Haul truck in Tacoma.

Prosecutors charged the 39-year-old woman with 10 counts of first-degree animal cruelty and one count of animal cruelty in the second-degree failure to provide care, according to court records.

The woman is being held at the Pierce County Jail on $30,000 bail after pleading not guilty to the charges during an arraignment in Superior Court on Monday, records show.

Tacoma police were dispatched at 12:09 p.m. Nov. 7 to help animal control with a complaint at a motel in the 1800 block of South 76th Street. Animal control had been asked to check on a U-Haul truck that was full of cats, according to charging documents. Officers initially saw at least 20 cats visible in the front cab of the truck.

Documents show officers located the 39-year-old woman, who came down the stairs of the motel and identified herself as the renter of the U-Haul. She used a key to unlock the sliding door at the back of the truck, and officers reported it was packed with personal items.

An officer found a blanket that covered a cage with about six cats inside. Three were dead. The rest of the cats were crying, wet from urine and stepping on the dead cats, documents show. More cats were heard further back in the truck.

Documents show that officers learned there were 73 cats in the U-Haul with 10 dead, one partially eaten by other cats and most severely malnourished. They were removed from the U-Haul by animal control and taken to The Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County.

Investigators noted food and water was not found in any part of the U-Haul, according to charging documents. The dead cats were emaciated. When asked the last time the woman checked on the cats, she said she had just checked on them and none were not dead.

The woman was detained as an animal-cruelty investigation began. Police read the woman her Miranda Rights, which she said she understood and waived, documents show.

The woman’s 15-year-old son was in the motel room, documents show. When police explained what was going on, he allegedly said, “I was afraid this would happen.” Police noted the motel room was “filthy” and smelled of urine. A dog, two turtles and two 11-day-old kittens were on the bed. Police contacted the boy’s grandmother to pick him up.

Documents show when the grandmother arrived, the boy kept the dog and turtles. Before leaving, they locked the U-Haul and said they would return it.

The woman has previously been convicted in Pierce County on theft charges from 2012.