A Hoffman Estates man was sentenced to three years in prison after his conviction in an animal cruelty case. Andre Norris, 29, pled guilty to three counts of aggravated cruelty to animals, a Class 4 Felony, at a DuPage County court Monday, according to a release from the DuPage County States Attorney’s office.
Judge Michael Reidy handed him the maximum available sentence.
Norris’s co-defendant in the case, 21-year-old Sarah Gorski, is scheduled to appear in court November 10.
Police Investigation
On March 2, 2020, Naperville police and animal control personnel responded to a trail area regarding a dead German shepherd, wrapped in a bed sheet in a storage container and disposed of in a wooded area near a drainage ditch.
Police identified the dog as Meliodas, or “Otis,” and found Gorski and Norris to be the alleged owners. Otis weighed about 20 pounds, while an average German shepherd should weigh about 70 pounds.
Detectives found in their investigation the two defendants allegedly owned at least two other dogs, a German shepherd/hound mix named Scooby and a corgi named Bubba.
On March 12, 2020, investigators executed a search warrant on Norris’ and Gorski’s Hoffman Estates home, to find Scooby in a rusted dog crate filled with animal feces, blood, and urine. He was severely starved, weighing about 20 pounds, was unable to walk, and had massive sores on his body, the release said. Bubba was not found during the search.
Investigators later learned that Bubba had allegedly died in early March, and found the corgi wrapped in a blanket in a field, where the two defendants allegedly dumped him. He weighed just four pounds.
Both deceased dogs were taken to the University of Illinois Veterinary School for a necropsy. They found Otis had died from canine parvovirus, starvation, and rat poisoning. Bubba was found to have died from severe starvation.
“Sickening”
“The conditions in which Mr. Norris kept these poor, defenseless animals were just sickening, and the manner in which they died is heartbreaking,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said.
Berlin said Scooby has made a full recovery and is living happily with his foster family.
Imprisoned
Norris was removed from the court immediately after the hearing to begin serving his sentence. He will be required to serve half his sentence before qualifying for parole.
Naperville News 17’s Casey Flanagan reports.
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