Protest set against prosecutor, PETA in dog's death

A rally will take place Monday, Nov. 24, in Accomac to protest the death of an Accomack County family's pet at the hands of Norfolk, Virginia-based animal-rights activists. Hundreds are expected to show up in the sleepy county seat for a march beginning at 10 a.m. to protest the euthanization of Maya, a Chihuahua owned by Wilbur Cerate of Hopeton. The march will end in front of the Accomack County Commonwealth's Attorney Office, where protestors will ask Commonwealth's Attorney Gary Agar to reconsider his decision not to prosecute the case. "The ultimate goal is to take it to trial," said organizer Edward Armstrong, Cerate's friend. The saga began in October, when two workers from People for the Ethical Treatment for Animals came to the Hopeton mobile home park where Cerate lives and took the Chihuahua from a porch while the family was out, police records show. The dog, a gift for Cerate's 9-year-old daughter, was later euthanized. The area has had an ongoing problem with stray dogs. Cerate said PETA has been there several times before, picking up strays. "There are probably about five or six other families" that have had their dogs taken in similar incidents, Armstrong said, noting, "PETA admitted themselves they took a total of three dogs" that day from the mobile home park. But in Cerate's case, a security camera on the property captured the scene — it showed a PETA van in the yard, then a woman entering a porch and leaving with the dog, which Cerate admitted had no collar or tags. Cerate, upon returning home, found the dog missing. The security footage told the story. He called PETA; then, on Oct. 20, he called the police. The Accomack County Sheriff's Office on Nov. 4 obtained arrest warrants for PETA workers Victoria Jean Carey, 54, and Jennifer Lisa Woods, 52, both of Virginia Beach, Virginia. They were arrested the next day, charged with larceny of a dog and released on personal recognizance bond. One of the women visited Cerate a couple of days after Maya was taken and told him the Chihuahua had been destroyed. She apologized and handed him a fruit basket, he said. Maya's death has sparked outrage far beyond the Eastern Shore of Virginia, with the report making headlines in news outlets across the nation. But Commonwealth Attorney Gary Agar declined to prosecute the case, saying there wasn't criminal intent...more