Rising Concerns Over Animal Cruelty in Florida

A Florida woman, Elizabeth Jaimes, has been charged with aggravated cruelty to animals with a weapon, a felony, after being caught on camera brutally beating a 9-year-old Siberian Husky named Maya with a rubber mallet. The abuse began as far back as October 2022, and Maya has sustained permanent damage, including blindness in one eye. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office has released a petition to prevent Jaimes from adopting or living with a pet in Hillsborough County. Jaimes was released on $7,500 bond, and Maya has been reunited with her owner and is recovering at home.