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BRIGHAM CITY — A Brigham City man is accused of severely neglecting his dogs after one was found dead in his RV and two others were believed to be just days away from death if not rescued by police.
Michael Roy Florence, 31, was charged Wednesday in 1st District Court with failing to register as a sex offender, a third-degree felony; aggravated cruelty to an animal, a class A misdemeanor; and two counts of animal cruelty, a class B misdemeanor.
Brigham City police obtained a search warrant for an RV owned by Florence after receiving a tip from a person concerned about Florence's dogs, according to charging documents.
"Officers discovered the inside of the RV in a deplorable condition with clutter and garbage everywhere. Officers located two dogs in severe distress that were locked up in two small wire crates with feces and urine everywhere. The dogs were extremely emaciated. Inside a bathroom nearby, officers discovered a garbage bag containing a deceased dog that had been dead for at least eight days," the charges state.
The dog was determined to have died from "severe emaciation," the charges state. A veterinarian told officers the other two dogs were suffering from "severe muscle atrophy due to extreme emaciation" and "would have died within a matter of days if they had not been saved," charging documents state. The charges do not state the breed of the dogs.
Investigators determined Florence had been staying with friends away from the RV for extended periods of time, including being away from the RV for over a week prior to the dogs being discovered.
According to court records, Florence was convicted of rape of a child and sodomy on a child in 2010, which requires him to keep his current address updated on the Utah Sex Offender Registry. Police, however, said there was no evidence that Florence had been living in the RV, which is listed on the registry as his primary residence.
