September 1, 1995

Dear Animal Fancier,

This past Memorial Day weekend some individual(s) dumped a plastic bag containing five new born puppies over a hillside just outside Fairview, WV at the top of Rush's Hill (Rte. 218 to Plum Run).

The puppies were discovered on Sunday evening by a concerned citizen who subsequently notified the Manager of the Marion County Humane Society, Shelia Devores. After discovering the severe deteriorated condition of the puppies (starved, dehydrated, and cold), Shelia began seeking assistance for the care of these little puppies. Several concerned citizens came to the puppies' rescue by taking a few puppies home. However, within three days of this horrible incident only two of the puppies had survived under the dedicated care of myself, Kammi Hefner, Brenda Powers (a dedicated animal lover) and veterinarian supervision of Dr.s George and Cindy Seiler of Paw Prints Veterinarian Clinic in Morgantown.

To date, these two male puppies remain the only survivors of this cruel act: Christopher and Barney. Together they weigh in under eight pounds.

Throughout this course of time I have been diligently searching for financial sources and support organizations to form a coalition against such abusive acts here in Marion County. I have contacted the Progressive Animal Welfare Society, the American Humane Association, the National Animal Control Association, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and the Latham Association. To date, only the Humane Society of the United States has offered a $250.00 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person(s) responsible for disposing these newborn puppies in such an inhumane manner. The Marion County Dog Activities Group (McDAG) has provided an additional $100 to this reward offer.

Sheriff Watkins has been notified of the situation and has been instrumental in producing required legal documentation attesting to the laws in Marion County forbidding such criminal acts. Sheriff Watkins is keenly interested in pursuing this investigation.

We are seeking your support in sending a very clear message to all citizens of Marion County that such viscous acts against animals will not be tolerated in our community. With your financial support we feel extremely confident that knowledgeable individuals in the Fairview area will come forth with incriminating evidence leading to the arrest and conviction of such individual(s) responsible for this hateful act. We are also interested in other avenues of locating support for our effort. Please contact me at your earliest convenience with this type of information.

This past week I spoke with Shelia only to learn that she was dealing with a bag of kittens that had also been disposed of in a plastic bag. Our goal in pursuing the individual(s) responsible for murdering Christopher and Barney's siblings is to alert similar individuals that there are law abiding citizens throughout Marion County that will not tolerate such behavior. Our hope is understanding that the Marion County Sheriff is willing to pursue these cases and prosecute responsible individuals may deter future acts of such disgust.

We are cordially inviting Sheriff Watkins, Shelia Devores, local TV stations (WDTV & WBOY), and local newspapers (Times-West Virginian, Clarksburg Telegram/Exponent, Dominion Post) to the scene of the crime to kick off this crusade on September 28, 1995 at 1:00pm. All financial support pledges should be made known to me by September 22, 1995 so that the staggering bounty may be announced to the public. Flyers will also be distributed in the local Fairview area that same afternoon.

In advance thank you for your support in this endeavor. If you have other ideas and/or suggestions in heightening the awareness of the general public that such cruel acts are indeed against the law and will not be tolerated in our community please contact me at your earliest convenience.

Sincerely,

Kammi Kai Hefner