Animal Lover

Fri, Aug 5, 2011 : 4:16 a.m.

It won't be long before he's back in trouble again. Too bad mommy and daddy can't buy him a hockey career. Is this Juliana keeping's son? If not, he should be.

free form

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 11:52 p.m.

I am so SICK of the comments claiming that those upset by this man's CRIME "care more about animals than people." It's such a lame and completely baseless argument. Where does this idea that empathy toward animals equals LESS compassion towards mankind come form? It's such a completely backward concept that I can't believe so many people repeat it as if it were true. In most cases, those who are cruel and violent toward animals are cruel and violent toward humans. There have been numerous studies that prove this psychological link. Yet, to many posters on this forum those who are appalled by willful and deliberate violence toward lesser creatures must somehow hate humans. Including homeless people. Seriously?

Donald Martin

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 4:36 p.m.

I hope 10 days is long enough to wake him up and grow him up, but I have my doubts. The key thing is that now he is a felon - that will follow him for the rest of his life. His opportunities will not come so freely now, he will face restrictions and have to explain himself over and over and over again as he goes through the rest of his life. That's good enough for me. He won't be pampered in jail, either, not with his history - something tells me what he (allegedly) did to that police car is going to factor into his work detail.

Margaret

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 4:29 p.m.

Why even bother? This doesn't even range in the area of disciplinary action...........................

discgolfgeek

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 12:45 p.m.

What an awesome pic !!! Community service was more fitting, I like the orange suit trash picker & work with animals suggestions, the best forms of punishment & rehab for the crime. He is a spoiled punk who needs to grow up, not a hardened criminal. Very few people can work with animals and not become a better person for it.

Peter Jameson

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 6:20 a.m.

in ann arbor its illegal if you are driving a hummer in a mcdonalds parking lot to begin with

Peter Jameson

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 6:16 a.m.

Only in ann arbor is this newsworthy...

CobraII

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 5:40 a.m.

Come on 10 days? Isn't that a little over the top? I was on a jury for a guy that robbed the gas station at State & Elsworth Rd & he only got 15 days & 1 year probation, no comparison here. the kid should have been sentenced to stoop & scoop in Gallup Park 8 hrs a day for 6 months.

Tag

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 5:27 a.m.

Couple of thoughts came to mind as I read the article and comments..... First, he's not a minor, he's 19 years old and this felony conviction should go down on his permanent record. Second, since this is a felony conviction he is barred from entering Canada, unless he gets a special exemption from the Canadian government. Canada also doesn't allow convicted drunk drivers in the country. Hockey career isn't likely going to happen. Third, where do we draw the line..... When one is driving a car you're doing it intentionally. If you rear-end someone you're at fault, doesn't matter what the other driver was doing. Point being is when a squirrel, rabbit, mouse, runs across the road, or a lighten bug hits your windshield and you intentionally (because you're intentionally driving) kill the animal should you end up convicted of a felony? The article should be expanded for a better understanding of the statue. As written one could assume deer hunters could be charged. I don't think jail time serves him or the citizens of Washtenaw County well and I think that a lot of community service time would have been more appropriate. Say around 920 hours. 24 hours x 10 days x 4 ducks.

K Wellman

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 2:58 a.m.

I also think 10 days is a rather light sentence for a wanton display of a complete disregard for life. For those of you who see it as "only a few ducklings" I would advise you to keep an eye out for this guy. It has been well established that there is a strong correlation between torturing and killing animals and moving on to doing the same to people. At least make sure that he serves his time in General Population and not in some sequestered area. I would like him to feel what it's like being abused and terrrized by someone who can d it because he is bigger and stronger.

A2frank

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 2:14 a.m.

Just 10 days? mommy and Daddy bail him out again. Judge Brown, you did not help this man with a sentence that is little better than a joke.

Steverino

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 2 a.m.

Writing from India.....where this kind of stuff could (and should) get you 6 months....Frankly, it's too easy to ignore that ducks (or any animals) are simple "just part of the environment"..a disposable (!?) entity, unrelated to us - but it's a proven fact that folks that don't respect the beasts around us don't respect the HUMANS around us either. Let him cool off and start with loving ducks, and move up to the "more enlightened beings." Frankly, if I were the judge, I would have given him a pet, with a call to reappear in a year, with the pet in hand, both beings perfectly happy and healthy.

John A2

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 1:58 a.m.

I know Judge Brown, and he isn't as soft as this looks. I can bet all of you a thousand bucks that there are heavy drug rehab and a lot of AA meetings he has to turn in every month to his probation officer, and they aren't pushovers either. If he gets my old buddy which he probably did, this boy has god or the devil on his shoulder, which ever the kid chooses. If he chooses to get it and blaze the trail provided by the judge and probation officer he will be treated with respect. If not then he will be spending a lot more time in jail and have his probation extended. It's that easy. So, Pearce if you read this, head my warning here. I am not telling who my buddy is in the probation dept. on purpose. Good Luck, but if I had my way you would have been cleaning cages out for 2 years at the Humane Society. Jail doesn't make people nicer, it just makes people meaner then they already are.

RunsWithScissors

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 1:21 a.m.

If the sentencing judge was feeling a bit creative, he/she could have fined Mr. Dillon to reading aloud each article/blog/comment regarding this story. It may be the only way this young man would truly understand what he did and why it upsets so many people. But 10 days in the slammer may also do the trick. Who knows? His picture and this story, though, will live on. In this day & age, most people "google" the person they're dating - especially when the dating gets serious. This is, hopefully, something that will follow him like a gosling hatched in his presence (look up "imprinting" for more info.) It'll be a while before he can leave this behind.

Grimey

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 12:55 a.m.

Glad this story is over.

Richard Carter

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 12:51 a.m.

10 days for a first offense seems about right. It's not like he illegally downloaded an mp3 or a movie, or something on that level of heinousness.

grimmk

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 12:34 a.m.

He should at least have some community service at the Humane Society!

Roadman

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 12:18 a.m.

One also must remember that the plea results in a felony conviction, which could affect Pearce in many ways in the future.

townie54

Thu, Aug 4, 2011 : 12:01 a.m.

look life is life.Do some of you people not see how rare and precious it is.I dont care if you believe in God or not just think about what a miracle life is.Its not anyones right to kill for no reason.At least hunters respect wildlife and use what they kill.I am very concerned about the mind of someone who just kills to kill.My great grandma would have come back from the dead to get me if I would have done something senseless to an animal

SW40

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 11:50 p.m.

For everyone commenting on this article that believes this sentence is light, you have no idea what sentencing guidelines are all about and you also live in a fantasy world. Washtenaw County is the most liberal criminal friendly county in Michigan. Offenders with extensive criminal history don't serve jail time. There are criminals who have been arrested for 10-20 felonies in their life who haven't spent more than a year in jail. Washtenaw County prosecutors fail to charge people with the habitual offender law because it mandates jail time, when it is charged it is the first charge dropped. For all the pro drug folks out there know this, NO one in Washtenaw County does jail time for their first narcotics arrest. This includes delivery of narcotics. There are people who have been arrested with a grow operation in their basement who didn't spend one night in the Hogback Hilton. Opinions are fine but facts are facts, this kid deserves to spend some time in jail and face fines and cost but to punish him more than hardened criminals who have committed violent crimes against humans is insane. Washtenaw County prosecutors repeatedly plea-bargain easily winnable cases and drop charges to keep their convictions rate high with little concern for public safety. Around the state Washtenaw County is known for being in line with Wayne County for plea bargaining and the judge's reputation is criminal friendly with soft sentencing and a tendency towards leniency. This kid shouldn't be treated any differently, if every other robber and burglar gets no jail time then neither does the rich kid who ran over some ducks. We should demand that criminals spend more time in jail, and if the rest of the criminals were serving real jail time I would fully support this young man spending far more than ten days in jail, but until that time he's getting what everyone else in Washtenaw County gets, a slap on the wrist.

David Franklin

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 11:48 p.m.

All of you people on here who are cheering for this kids incarceration need to really reevaluate what you are saying. 1. Animals have no rights. Only humans do. This kid did nothing wrong. So he killed some ducks? Who cares. I kill rabbits and eat them. Does this make me a bad person? No. They're just animals. Once ducks start making art, building skyscrapers, and writing books, I might reconsider their position in the world. Until then, they exist for the purpose of pleasing human beings. 2. People still call marijuana "dope?" Really? Anyone who thinks that smoking marijuana is wrong needs to advocate for the criminalization of caffeine, alcohol, and any other mind/body altering drug. The fact that this kid was prosecuted for victimless "crimes" goes to show how backwards the justice system is in this country. The fact that so many people are cheering for his punishment (and lamenting the lack of severity), is a telling statement about the statist and sadistic nature of this society.

stevek

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 11:47 p.m.

Gee, I thought he said he was innocent. Didn't his lawyer say his client was innocent? Funny how things change.

mike

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 10:41 p.m.

The people that want this kid locked up for life for running over some flea infested bags of bird droppings are probably the same people that want to evict the homeless from their camp. People are more important than animals. Some of you need to get your priorities straight.

snoopdog

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 10:26 p.m.

One thing I think we all can agree on, his picture is "priceless". I laugh out loud every time I see it ! Good Day

Kevin McGuinness

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 10:12 p.m.

I would like all the hypocritical people who think he should spend any time in jail to go check them selves for a day in jail in the next time they have a hamburger or a sausage , or a hot dog or a steak or a chicken pot pie. Maybe they are not aware but the living conditions and slaughter methods for the cute animals they are eating are a lot more "inhumane (as if that phase applies to animals) than what Dillon did). Look at yourself before you throw the first stone. This whole thing about being holier than thou on how you treat animals in Ann Arbor is sickening.

racerx

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 9:54 p.m.

Good for him! Some of these post want him to ruin his whole life for a teenage act of stupidity for a very short period of time! And I'll say it, "...if I had a dime for every stupid act I did as a teenager..." Give the guy a break treehuggers! If you feel this bad, go to the Humane Society and see if they have any spare ducklings to adopt, then roll a fat one, chill with a glass of Shiraz, and think back on how dumb you were at one time in life. Good grief!

gladys

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 9:45 p.m.

I'd like to see chain gangs reinstated for crimes like this. Jails are already overcrowded. Let this little over indulged punk work for a week in the hot sun picking up trash and cutting weeds along the freeways.

a2badger

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 9:09 p.m.

10 Days in jail will accomplish what? His reputation is already shot. A felony? I hope not! To those who post on this meaningless blog Wouldn't you hope that this person has learned a lesson? And yes, he should get help

Carole

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 9:02 p.m.

How about doing "community service time" for a lengthy period of time instead of sending him to jail with three squares, a bed, and roof.

Sparty

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 8:43 p.m.

Money talked --- this is just a slap on the wrist. How is it that Michael Vick got serious prison time and yet this jerk gets just 10 days in jail? What about the possession of illegal controlled drugs? What about driving under the influence? This is just another example of the justice system seemingly carrying different penalties when money can ease the way.

Cash

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 8:26 p.m.

Money talks, Dillon walks.

Mark

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 8:14 p.m.

His crime is being an immature, unfeeling young man (and there are plenty of those to go around). He didn't rob a liquor store, didn't ride over a cyclist, didn't steal a purse from a little old lady, nor did he go and turf someone's front yard with his "mommy's car." Yes, we are an empathic bunch here in Ann Arbor, and birds , raccoons, possums, squirrels, woodchucks, and deer die from cars all the time. It's just that this time we have a name and a face and video to go with the crime. So, he becomes a whipping boy for all the pent up rage out there. If I had been handing out a sentence -- he would have 200 hours of community service cleaning roadkill off the highways in Washtenaw County. Far more useful than 10 days in jail on my dime. All kinds of horrible things have been attributed to this young man -- he's going to grow up into a monster, etc. People do grow up to be good citizens, and while we don't know how this kids life will turn out - people have done far worse as mature adults in things that affect our daily lives.

Chris 8 - YPSI PRIDE

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 8:11 p.m.

If he gets in to any kind of brush with the law while on probation, he will be brought back before the sentencing judge and re-sentenced on these charges plus what ever new ones he racks up. He has to walk around knowing this. For some reason he did not get the message from his first brush with the law. Ten days in jail is not sending a strong enough message to this young man. At the age of 19 I was driving around in a 10 year old car that was a "drove to church on sunday only special". It took a good part of my minumum wage paycheck to maintain it. After this incident he continued to drive a hummer, owned by his mother (I once saw him on the road) and he was allowed by his parents and the court to attend a hockey tournament out of state? If something like this took place in my home with a child that lived here, he or she would be banned from driving until he or she moved out and he or she would not be attending any hockey tournaments while under my roof. WRONG MESSAGE being sent. We will read another headline about this young man again. I am willing to place a bet that he is arrested again before he turns 21. Six months in jail and 3 years probation would have been appropriate. 10 days equals either 7 or 5 real days and with release procedures and sentencing on a Wednesday he will walk out by Friday morning. If I am correct they do not release sentenced prisoners from the county jail on weekends. Therefore he must be released on friday. (September 7th falls on you guessed it, Wednesday.) Who is being paid off, that's the question in my mind!

Cat

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 8:09 p.m.

10 days... really ?? 1 year probabtion...What sort of punishment is that... the max is 4 years... 1460 days just a fraction of that..especially when he now pleads guilty --- a mother duck lost four of her ducklings...what precidence does this set? How about the guy who ran over the geese just days after this incident occured... what sort of punishment will he recieve? I certainly hope probation has stiff concequences.

godsbreath64

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 8:07 p.m.

So it cost him more to wash off the wildlife from his radiator, than to pay for his felonice. It is relieving to see the lawyer fees will not be fettered by client's debt society.

Elaine F. Owsley

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 8:02 p.m.

So, does that apply across the board? Anyone who runs down animals and has possession of a controlled substance at the same time gets 10 days in jail? I can just hear the next "truth or dare" - or frat initiation being planned.

Chris Taylor

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:55 p.m.

Rich kids with lawyers get off all the time. If this kid was poor he would have gone down for all the charges.

1bigbud

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:49 p.m.

So now can i stop on US-23 any hour of the day to let a duck cross the road I don't have to worry about others just the Ducks on the road Poor Ducks Will the insurance Co have to pay the MaMa Duck support for life ???

Dusky

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:48 p.m.

Ten days in jail and no monetary fine for his deliiberate killing of these ducklings is way too light of a sentence for this young man. Personally I worry about the liberal deals that are handed out in the courts today, and will take more time researching judges before I vote again. Certainly counseling is needed in this instance....lots of it....do why wasn't that part of the sentence? And what happened to 'Driving Under the Influence' and 'possession of illegal drugs' charges. Shame on the Court for making such a deal.....it truly is a miscarriage of justice and has probably not helped Mr. Pearce's serious mental problems at all.

Lynn Liston

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:46 p.m.

Putting this in perspective, we're talking about a 19-year old who has some serious maturity problems and who did a pretty despicable thing to some helpless ducklings, not he's not a serial rapist or murderer. He has stepped up to his responsibility and admitted his guilt, which is a big step forward. Justice has to be tempered with mercy and I think 10 days *in jail* sounds pretty unpleasant, plus the year's probation will seriously disrupt his plans for a career in hockey. I hope that Judge Brown sees this as an opportunity to help this young man, and encourages him and his parents to get some counseling.

johnnya2

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:41 p.m.

I would have preferred about 3 months and the full four years on probation. That would keep him under control for 4 more years. If he does nothing wrong , then the probabtion means nothing

no flamers!

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:40 p.m.

We are talking about ducklings (or goslings, as previously reported). We aren't talking about pets. Canad Geese and their goslings are a nuisance animal that is forcibly and legally removed from corporate office park ponds and golf courses every day. They are killed and provided to food banks for the homeless and/or chased away with dogs and robotic boats etc. Granted, killing them by vehicle serves no purpose and should be illegal. It should result in punishment. But several weekend days of volunteer work in an animal shelter, or assisting a Vet, would seem to be the appropriate punishment for an 18 year-old that made a unplanned mistake that resulted in the killing of animals that can and are killed legally every day by different (but no quicker) methods. It always troubles me when there is so much greater empathy for animals than people.

Kathy

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:24 p.m.

So if a person smokes pot and kills ducklings he only gets 10 days, but if a person gets busted for dope, it is likely that person would get the max?? Makes sense.........not...

aaudubon

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:15 p.m.

Agreed. I appreciate that he will at least spend some time in jail, but it does seem too light. It takes a truly mean person to do something like this. Part of his probation should be going to a pshycologist.

suem

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:14 p.m.

A felony conviction will mess up his life for a long time and in ways he hasn't even thought of yet. Hopefully it has taught him to think.

libertyordeath

Wed, Aug 3, 2011 : 7:03 p.m.

I didn't expect the max of 4 years but 10 days seems a bit light. How about 2 or 3 months to actual alter his aspirations as a hockey player? Hopefully this is the last negative news we hear about Mr. Pearce.