A preliminary hearing is set for June 17 in the case of Jerry Lee Southern ? a Wichita man facing 70 counts of animal cruelty charges in connection with a pit bull neglect investigation in Newkirk, Okla.
Southern, 32, has been free on bond since January but made a brief appearance in Kay County District Court Friday. His preliminary hearing is set to begin at 9 a.m. Following the hearing Southern will enter a plea and either enter a plea agreement or proceed to trial.
Southern was renting property south of Newkirk where more than 100 pit bulls were discovered Dec. 2 by hunters. Ninety-six were staked outside without food or water. Ten dogs were found in a barn. Some puppies were also found.
Southern – who has a long rap sheet going back to 1994 – told authorities that he raised and then sold the dogs but that nobody had been buying them. He has been charged in the past with cruelty to animals and was ordered by a Kansas court not to possess any Pit Bulls.
