Point Reyes Light - November 24, 2004
Inverness Park 19 year old kills family cat; institutionalized
By Jacob Resneck
An Inverness Park 19 year old, who in a psychotic state beheaded the family pet last week, has been charged with felony cruelty to an animal. The youth was taken to a psychiatric ward after beheading his grandmother’s cat.
Sheriff’s deputies at 11:01 p.m. Nov. 16 received a call from the grandmother that Shane Goelet was having a "psychotic episode" and had killed her cat.
Sheriff’s deputies Ray Watson and Chris Hunter found Goelet sitting quietly in his room. An affidavit filed by the District Attorney’s Office to secure an arrest warrant, says that Goelet told the deputies he couldn’t explain why he had killed the cat, adding that he had eaten part of its brains and muscles.
Deputies found the cat’s remains in a bathtub. Having been advised that Goelet has suffered from manic depression, they drove Goelet to Kaiser Mental Health Services in San Rafael.
"Deputies at the time thought that placing him on a 72-hour hold would be a good idea," Lt. Scott Anderson, the commander of the West Marin Sheriff’s Substation told The Light. He said Goelet was reportedly cooperative with deputies.
Two days later, Goelet was transferred to Mount Diablo Psychiatric facility in Walnut Creek. The hospital has refused to release any information about his condition or even confirm that he is a patient.
Upon his release, Goelet will be arrested and charged with animal cruelty, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in jail and a minimum of probation. Assistant District Attorney Ed Berbarian said that Goelet has no prior convictions.
Speaking on Wednesday, Lt. Anderson said that Goelet still had not been arrested, but that he expected the hospital would contact the Sheriff’s Office as soon as he was discharged. Bail is expected to be set at $50,000. A court date will be set during the arraignment.