#Maryland woman sentenced for 27 dead dogs found in ‘chamber of horrors’

“#Maryland woman sentenced for 27 dead dogs found in ‘chamber of horrors’”

July 29, 2020 | 1:54pm

A Maryland woman whose rented home was found with 27 dead dogs inside has been sentenced to seven years in prison by a judge who ripped the residence this week as a “chamber of horrors.”

Laura Filler, 56, was sentenced Tuesday by a judge to serve 33 years in prison – with all but seven years and seven days suspended – after she pleaded guilty in October to 11 counts of aggravated animal cruelty, the Carroll County Times reports.

“I’m very sorry all this happened,” Filler, who has been held without bond since her April 2019 arrest, told Judge Fred Hecker prior to sentencing.

Filler and her husband, John J. Roberts, 50, were arrested after animal control officers found 38 dogs – including 11 dead – at their rented home in Hampstead, the newspaper reports.

Another 16 dead pooches were found days later at the property, which the pair had been using an unlicensed breeding operation, according to the Caroll County State’s Attorney’s Office.

Filler and Roberts, who rented the home since 2008, had advertised their business online as Black Rock Dalmatians and Black Rock Puppies, WJZ reports.

A prosecutor in court Tuesday showed two videos depicting the couple’s home, which Hecker described at one point as a “chamber of horrors,” according to the Carroll County Times.

Melissa Hockensmith, a Carroll County senior assistant state’s attorney, said the footage showed decaying dog remains in a bathtub and a shed on the property, as well as moldy dog food throughout the home and sludge covering the walls from floor to ceiling.

Hecker also ordered to Filler to pay $10,900 in restitution to the Humane Society of Carroll County, which rescued the 27 dogs found alive inside, and $91,400 to the company that owns her former property and home, which has since been demolished, the newspaper reports.

Roberts, Filler’s husband, was sentenced in October to 33 years in prison, with all but 11 years and 11 days suspended, after he pleaded guilty to 11 counts of aggravated animal cruelty.