Raymond Feagles of East Bay Township was arraigned Tuesday, and faces several charges.
His arrest finally came after a blight complaint turned into an animal abuse investigation.
“I think the turning point for us, as the township with the blight, is that we requested a formal hearing,” said East Bay Township Supervisor Beth Friend.
Feagles has been cited in the past for ordinance violations, but his history with law enforcement and East Bay Township is a long one.
“It’s been extensive—as long as I have known and I’ve heard even for upwards of thirty and forty years—so many decades,” said Friend.
Previous complaints included barking, unlicensed dogs and animal abandonment or cruelty—just to name a few.
“I don’t think anyone could predict that it was going to go to the level that it did, recently, so I’m thankful we were able to come to the resolution that we did,” said Grand Traverse County Undersheriff Michael Shea.
from neighbors began to increase dramatically last year.
“Those really heightened, I would say, last summer specifically,” said Friend. “I don’t know if that had to do with the weather–may have carried some of the odor, or if it was the number of dogs, I don’t know–but they did increase in volume.”
9&10 News spoke to a few of Feagles’ neighbors, but all were afraid to go on camera–even anonymously, in fear of the retaliation they might face.
“I hope no one is ever too concerned or feels too threatened to call law enforcement, because that’s why we’re here,” said Shea.
Today, everyone feels much safer and happier in their own neighborhood.
“We are very fortunate many of the neighbors were working with us and were very patient, and knew that we were diligently trying to work through this issue in the appropriate, legal framework,” said Friend.
Cherryland Humane Society is still in need of donations, after taking in over 160 dogs from Feagles’ now-condemned property.
You can find the full list of needs on their .
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