Couple pleads not guilty to killing cat in dryer

QUINCY, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com) -- Lori E. Tasney, 36, and Christopher M. Lang, 32, both of Hunt Street in Quincy pleaded not guilty to larceny and animal cruelty indictments in Norfolk Superior Court Friday, according to a press release from the Norfolk District Attorney's Office.

Quincy Police reported to a Sea Street address in May after residents found the house cat, named Kitty, dead in the backyard, according to the release. The cat was found hours after a female resident asked the couple, who were houseguests, if they knew anything about several hundred dollars that was missing from her purse.

Kitty was found in the yard with multiple signs of trauma, the release said. The residents of the Sea Street home attempted to use the dryer later that day and found cat hair in the lint trap. The Animal Rescue League of Boston performed a necropsy on Kitty and found traumatic thermal injuries.

According to the release, Tasney and Lang were the only people home during the time frame when the cat suffered the injuries.

Lang was held on $10,000 cash bail and Tasney on $5,000 cash bail, both amounts were initially set at their arraignment. The judge extended the order that the couple stay away from animals and the victims in this case. They will appear in court again on Jan. 29, 2014 for a pre-trial conference.

Cox Media Group