PHOENIX — A Mesa woman suspected of torturing and killing multiple dogs will not face felony charges. This comes after an animal cruelty investigation that ABC15 first reported on in November.
Judy Seraphine and Ally Zacovic believe two dogs entrusted with Brook Scalero, 42, were killed in her care.
“She admitted, and she tortured him and killed him,” Seraphine, who previously lived with Scalero and her husband in her Mesa apartment, said.
This week they demanded answers, alongside other animal advocates, outside the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, after being notified by MCAO that Scalero will not face felony animal cruelty charges.
“Frankly, I'm completely disgusted,” Seraphine said.
Mesa police arrested Scalero in November for allegedly stealing jewelry from her roommate, Seraphine.
Police then recommended she be charged with three felony animal cruelty charges after investigating a personal journal. ABC15 obtained a copy of the journal in which Scalero writes about the torture of more than 10 dogs and the deaths of five.
Mesa police say Scalero also admitted to killing three dogs during interviews.
“The last time I saw him, he was in one of his little yellow cashmere sweaters,” Seraphine said, looking at a photo of her dog.
One of those three was Gus, her 5-year-old West Highland Terrier. Seraphine says Scalero took the dog out, then later told her he had died. His remains were never found.
Another was a 3-year-old rescue dog named Pepe.
“What he suffered is just horrendous,” Zacovic told ABC15 last year.
She says she had trained Pepe before Scalero took him from her rescue organization, P.A.W.S. Fur the CAUSE, in Mesa last spring.
Zacovic showed ABC15 the spot outside of Scalero’s apartment in Mesa, where she had written in her journal about leaving Pepe’s body. Maricopa County Animal Control recovered a dead dog there in November, later identified as Pepe through his microchip.
“They've got the bodies, and then they have the journal where she wrote in her own handwriting, the graphic, detailed torture and killings of the 12 dogs,” Zacovic said.
However, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office says a lack of physical evidence means they are unlikely to secure felony convictions in court.
In a statement, they call the diary descriptions “hideous,” but go on to say, “While Ms. Scalero’s diary contains graphic descriptions of the torture and death of several dogs, we have no physical evidence that connects any dog to the stories in the diary. In other words, there is no way to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the injuries described were inflicted on any dog.”
MCAO adds that since the remains of the dead dog found in Mesa were not preserved, necropsy is not an option.
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On October 5 of last year, police responded to the VCA Animal Hospital for reports of a dead dog. Investigators say a microchip confirmed it was a dog named Griffin, registered to Scalero. Police say Griffin had injuries consistent with animal abuse.
Regarding this body, MCAO says, “The other dog is in a state in which necropsy is not possible. A photograph of an injured dog provides us with no means to prove a connection to the dogs in the diary.”
In a phone call with MCAO, Jeanine L’Ecuyer, Chief of Staff for Communications, told ABC15 that Scalero’s confession during police interviews also needs physical evidence to back it up in court.
“The ethics standards that govern attorneys are clear,” the MCAO statement reads. “We are obligated to bring cases to court that we believe are likely to result in a conviction. There is no option to simply file the case to ‘see what a jury would decide.’”
Now the case goes back to city prosecutors, where Scalero could face misdemeanor charges.
Mesa police tell ABC15 that while the case was cleared with Scalero’s arrest, they will investigate any new information that comes out.
L’Ecuyer says if new information is developed, MCAO will reopen the case and review it.
Scalero is in custody without bond, facing unrelated jewelry theft charges.
“Maricopa County considers animals personal property,” Seraphine, who is the victim in the theft case, said. “The charges with the jewelry theft are moving forward, which is fine, except my puppy dog — all these puppy dogs — are much more important than a bracelet.”
The victims named in the animal cruelty case have until Friday to bring new information to the County Attorney’s Office. Zacovic says she has been working to get in touch with MCAO since last Wednesday. L’Ecuyer was not able to say if they are currently conferring with anyone.
“I want to know why,” Zacovic said. “We all as a rescue community, and a community in general, are afraid for our safety, our animals, our children, if this woman is released back into society.”
The advocates say their biggest concern is a message they believe could put animals in danger in Arizona.
“The laws that we have in place already for our animals need to be enforced,” Zacovic said. “People are going to continue to commit these heinous crimes when they know that there is no accountability to be had.”
