Western Wisconsin woman mistreated, killed animals, prosecutors say

Animal cruelty charges filed against woman

A western Wisconsin woman is facing felony charges after prosecutors say she mistreated and killed animals on her property. FOX 9?s Mike Manzoni has the story.

ST. CROIX FALLS, Wisc. (FOX 9) - A cat rescue owner from western Wisconsin is now facing animal cruelty charges.

Cat owner cruelty charges

What we know:

On July 3, police, firefighters and others wearing hazmat gear scoured Westen’s property on North Adams Street in St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin.

On July 9, Westen was arrested and booked into the Polk County Jail on animal cruelty charges. Prosecutors said she did not feed, mistreated and killed the animals.

She faces a felony charge of mistreatment of animals/cause death and a misdemeanor charge of intent. fail/provide food for animal.

The backstory:

Neighbors said Westen runs an animal rescue out of her house but took in more cats than she could handle. They said she has lived on the street for decades but that the problem started about 10 years ago.

Neighbors say street reeked of dead animals, urine

What they're saying:

Neighbors said the house has emitted strong odors of dead animals, urine and feces for years. They said they repeatedly tried to get authorities to intervene but were not successful.

"It smells like garbage, dead animal, ammonia, feces...." said longtime neighbor Kevin Miller. "They were banging on the front door, and they finally got that thing open, and they came out and one of the officers was puking in his mask."

His wife, Christine, said she found a dead cat outside the house, which triggered the investigation.

"There were quite a few dead animals that were pulled out," she said. "It’s been very disruptive. It’s been heartbreaking. It’s been tragic."

Westen could not be reached for comment.

What's next:

According to court records, Westen is due back in court on Aug. 11.