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Fla. Puppy Rapist Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison

By Brett Snider, Esq. on September 23, 2014 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

A Florida man who raped his puppy was sentenced to five years in state prison on Friday.

James Guy Bull, 62, a real credit to the Sunshine State, was sentenced on two counts of felony cruelty to animals and various misdemeanor charges related to sex with and cruelty to animals, reports USA Today. Bull pleaded guilty to the charges based various incidents where neighbors had seen him "fondling" or "in the act of having sex" with his 8-month-old female pit bull, Coco.

How did prosecutors deal with this puppy rapist case?

Puppy Found Emaciated, Abused

Coco's abuse might have continued for years had it not been for Bull's neighbors. USA Today reports that in March, two of them came forward and informed police of the sexual abuse they had witnessed. Upon arriving at Bull's home, police found Coco chained to a post on the front porch with no water, shelter, or food and only about "8 inches of free reign."

Coco -- who was renamed "Rose" -- is now in the custody of an animal rescue group.

Bestiality and Animal Cruelty

Many would argue that bestiality is, by definition, animal cruelty, but Florida has laws that allow animal rapists like Bull to be prosecuted for both cruelty and bestiality. Under Florida law, aggravated animal cruelty is punishable by a maximum of five years in prison.

Florida is no stranger to these bestiality criminal cases, and the state actually passed a new bestiality law back in 2011. The law specifically prohibits sexual conduct or contact with an animal, which is punishable as a misdemeanor in the first degree. When this law first came into effect, there was some debate over whether the law covered oral sex with animals, but it certainly covers fondling an animal's genitals or penetrating them.

Bull was charged based on the various incidents his neighbors had observed (of him having sexual contact with Coco), as well as the conditions that officers found the puppy in.

State Attorney R.J. Larizza told USA Today that the facts in Bull's case "are incomprehensible and vile," and we agree. Prison couldn't have happened to a better person.

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