I am continuously amazed by the human capacity for cruelty and stupidity. Here we have a man, a former professional baseball player and sometime-actor by the name of Joseph Petcka, who claims he brutalized and killed his (presumably ex) girlfriend’s cat because “he attacked me”.
The cat was an eight pound declawed (yes, no claws) orange tabby named “Norman” who belonged to Mr. Petcka’s then girlfriend, Lisa Altobelli. Apparently, Mr. Petcka has severe self-esteem issues, because, according to Ms. Altobelli, he obsessed with how much attention she paid to the cat versus him. On the night in question, an apparently alcohol fuelled Mr. Petcka was once again trying to get chummy with the cat. The cat protested, Joseph and Lisa had an argument over this, and she left the apartment to let him cool down.
When she returned, the apartment was a shambles and Norman, the cat, was curled up in his favorite hiding spot, dead. Mr. Petcka was no where to be found. According to Mr. Petcka’s testimony, the eight pound cat “attacked” him, and frail, 200+ pound ex-pro athlete Mr Petcka “defended himself” by tossing him away. Apparently, he “tossed him away” repeated with his boots, the wall, and other nearby hard furniture: according to a vet autopsy, Norman’s injuries appeared as if he had been run over by a car.
All of this disgusts me. My first reaction is that Mr. Petcka and people like him should be wiped from the face of the planet. But of course I don’t know what he may have suffered in his life… but if he had any balls at all, he’d man up and admit what he did, and get some therapy. Claiming “self defense” is pathetic in the most extreme way. If he is that much of a fragile flower, he wouldn’t last thirty seconds in a real prison- which is maybe where he belongs.
Just to clarify: I have six cats currently, and have had others in the past, and have handled some abused cats at shelters and been badly bitten. Never once have I flung a cat into a wall, stomped on it with my boots, and claimed self defense. I’m a flabby, unathletic geek who has never played “character building” sports, and yet I am apparently a much hardier, more compassionate human than this sack of offal named Joseph Petcka will ever be. To be clear: his action was despicable, but I could probably accept a boozed up mistake if only the so-called “man” would admit what he did and take his punishment.
My main posting this, other than to rant… if you have ever watched Mr. Petcka in a TV show (Sex and the City) or on a commercial, I figure you should know just what kind of boot scrapings you are really looking at. Unless he stands up and admits what he has done, he deserves any horror inflicted upon him. Unfortunately, knowing how the law works, he’ll probably get off without much more than a meaningless fine.
P.S.: The jurors are apparently deadlocked (I.E.: can’t reach a decision on verdict) in Mr. Petcka’s trial. Good job picking apparently useless jurors…