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Mule kill videotape stuns trial By CHRIS BRISTOL For close to 30 minutes, nobody in the courtroom of Jackson County Judge Dan Harris spoke a word. Instead, they all watched a video. The only sound in court was the voice of Rodney Womack, a resident of Sams Valley who had secretly taped two men shooting a mule over and over and over. One of the men, Womack's neighbor David Lee Bennett, was on trial Tuesday for animal abuse. "He shot it again," Womack says, his voice registering disbelief. "I don't know how many times he's shot that thing before I grabbed the camera." At least 10 times, his wife Terry answers in the background. "More than that, I think," Womack grimly replies. The tape continued. The shooting continued. Bennett's friend James Hastie was using a single-shot 20-gauge shotgun loaded with BB-sized birdshot. The dun-colored mule would not die. "You can see the chest swell up (and) and blood flies out," Womack goes on, like a play-by-play sportscaster. "That thing's still standing!" Finally the doomed animal goes down. "It's still moving," he says, "trying to get up." Then a long pause. "Shot it again." Hastie, 52, pleaded guilty Monday to first-degree animal abuse for his role in the incident. The mule eventually died, but not until Hastie shot it maybe 30 times -- mainly in the chest. During a break in Bennett's trial, Harris sentenced Hastie to 18 months bench probation and a $1,600 fine. The judge also ordered 72 hours of community service, including 32 hours at the direction of county Animal Control. The gray-bearded White City man, dressed in blue Levis and a black leather motorcycle jacket, apologized to the court. He said he was only trying to help Bennett out and simply used the wrong tool for the job. "My ignorance led to this crime," he said. "I'm sorry. That's about all I can say. It was an act of mercy gone bad." Bennett's role in the matter was a different story. He demanded a trial -- by judge, not jury -- on the grounds that he was not responsible for what happened because he knew nothing of guns. It was all Hastie's fault. Taking the stand Tuesday in his own defense, he testified that he bought the mule for $60 at auction and decided it had to be put down later the same day because it was harassing mare he owned and then tried to bust through a fence. In doing so, he said, the mule had suffered a serious injury to its chest. Blood was spouting "two feet" from the wound, he said. Prosecutor Debbie Minder questioned Bennett's story. A local veterinarian who specializes in equine medicine testified the mule did not appear on the tape as though it was injured at all, much less mortally. Regardless of motive, Minder argued that Bennett, 43, was ultimately responsible for his animal. Owners have a right to kill their animals, she said, but they must do so in a humane way. "A reasonable person, after two or three shots, would conclude this method was not working," she argued. "Where the crime occurs is that he doesn't tell him (Hastie) to stop." Judge Harris agreed. Bennett was caught on tape. "Obviously from the videotape you participated," he told the defendant. "It's obvious this was a joint venture." As with Hastie, the judge put Bennett on 18 months probation and ordered the same community service. He also ordered an $1,800 fine, which the unemployed Bennett can reduce by half if he attends an animal-cruelty class. The mule's original owner, Trail rancher Leonard Petersen, said he was sorry he ever took the animal to auction. It's name was Jack. "He was like a dog, and he had a lot of smarts," Petersen said. "Those two fellas, what they did was plain stupid." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA