PHOENIX — It could be months before a condo off Interstate 17 and Greenway Road can be restored. Inside, there is debris from hoarding, rodents, pests and more than a dozen dogs.
The woman living in the condo, 62-year-old Janet Schwarz has been charged with 16 misdemeanor counts of Animal Cruelty.
Neighbors living in that community have been sounding the alarm for years.
“It had become a concern when our neighbors had rats coming out of the garage and things like that," Veronica Austin said. “The last couple years, we've really had to put a lot of money, you know, towards, you know, roaches and things like that that are coming from the property.”
That suspicion was confirmed after a fire at Schwarz’s condo in March.
Neighbor, Michael Podlesnik was there after the fire. “Once the windows were broken, we saw what was inside.”
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Neighbors tell ABC15 the odor and trash will take weeks to restore, and they’re worried about their health.
Beyond the nuisance, animals inside Schwarz’s home were impacted.
In a statement, The Arizona Humane Society told ABC15:
“We can confirm that 18 total pets were confiscated from this residence including three that are deceased. As this is an ongoing investigation, we are unable to provide any additional information at this time, thank you.”
For now, Schwarz’s misdemeanor animal cruelty charges are through the City of Phoenix’s Prosecutors Office.
But because three animals have died, new charges could be sent to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
MCAO explaining to ABC15:
“..Submittal decisions are made by the law enforcement agency that responds to or investigates the crime. A police department may submit its findings to this office for possible felony charges or to a city prosecutor's office for misdemeanor charges. What you are asking would be better directed at Phoenix Police as we have not received this case.
If felonies need to be filed, the city prosecutor’s office that received the case would need to send it back to the law enforcement agency, and that agency would then submit the case to our office. I would also suggest checking with the city prosecutor’s office to see where this case stands.”
If updated animal cruelty charges are sent to MCAO, Schwarz may face harsher punishment.
Monday, Senate Bill 1234 passed in the Senate to strengthen animal protection laws statewide.
ABC15 is also getting new court documents that show Schwarz has been taken to civil court by her HOA several times over the years.
We reached out to her HOA and restoration company. Neither commented at the time of publication.
