Man accused of beating his Dog

The trial of a man accused of beating his dog went ahead Thursday despite his absence.

Kevin Bastarache was charged with causing an animal to suffer after an incident in Riverside Park in April 2007. Prosecutor Alexandra Janse told the court the man was seen by at least three people punching and kicking his dog in the head. He was also seen lifting the animal by its leash and slamming it to the ground.

Defence lawyer Richard Kaiser told the court he spoke with his client Wednesday around 8 a.m. The man told him he was in New Brunswick, but planned to leave for Kamloops immediately. He apparently intended to hitchhike across Canada.

Judge Hermann Rohrmoser noted a pretrial conference was held a month ago, and the court was told all parties were ready to proceed.

Rohrmoser ordered the trial to proceed in the man's absence. Kaiser withdrew as Bastarache's counsel.

With that, Janse called the Crown's witnesses in quick order, including one of the witnesses who saw the attack, the investigating police officer, and the veterinarian who treated the dog afterward.

Kim Parker said a man repeatedly punched and kicked the dog, then slammed it to the ground after lifting it off the ground by its leash.

"He would stop to just kick it," she said.

"He was swinging it in the air over his head, then he would slam it on the pavement. It went over and over and over again.

"It was extremely horrific."

Dr. Ken Gummeson, a veterinarian, told the court the animal suffered extensive scuffing and bruising consistent with being abused.

The 40-pound mixed-breed dog did not suffer any life-threatening injury, but was clearly traumatized. The dog cowered in fear when people approached, and only after a lengthy period of careful handling did it come around.

The dog was turned over to the SPCA and adopted out of the Kelowna shelter.

Const. Darrell McDonald said Bastarache showed no signs of remorse after the incident. He signed a form relinquishing ownership of the animal, saying he no longer wanted it.

McDonald said the accused man told him the dog had bit him, prompting him to retaliate against the dog in the fashion he did.