Man accused of drowning 5 kittens in Ypsilanti Township pleads no contest to 2 charges

An Ypsilanti Township man accused of drowning 5 kittens in a bathtub at his home in May, pleaded no contest Wednesday afternoon to two misdemeanor counts of animal cruelty, authorities said.

Jerry Allan Hagerman, 55, entered the plea in 14A District Court and is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 29, said Matt Schaecher, supervisor of cruelty and rescue at the Humane Society of Huron Valley.

Each count is punishable by up to a year in jail.

Scheacher said one of Hagerman's neighbors at Lakeview Mobile Home Park called 911 about 9 p.m. May 31 after seeing Hagerman bury a number of kittens in a yard outside his home on Joan Circle. The neighbor reported that he believed Hagerman drowned the animals.

When deputies arrived, they found 5 dead kittens, Schaecher said. Investigators seized the kittens' mother, Cricket, who was not injured, Schaecher said.

Hagerman, who was heavily intoxicated, claimed it was an accident, Schaecher said, telling investigators that his kittens were in a box that was knocked over by a friend's dog into the bathtub.

Schaecher said Hagerman offered conflicting accounts of what happened. Initially, Hagerman said the animals drowned after he took a bath, Schaecher said. He later told investigators the animals drowned as he was preparing to take a bath, Schaecher said.

Hagerman surrendered Cricket, who has been adopted out in the Ann Arbor area, Schaecher said.

Hagerman could not be reached for comment this morning.

Lee Higgins covers crime and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached by phone at (734) 623-2527 and email at leehiggins@annarbor.com.