A hearing to evaluate Kevin Fifield’s ability to stand trial for
animal cruelty charges was postponed.
A hearing to evaluate Kevin Fifield’s ability to stand trial for animal cruelty charges was postponed.
Fifield, of Morgan Hill, was scheduled to appear for a competency hearing Wednesday in Santa Clara County Superior Court in San Jose. The hearing was rescheduled to Dec. 22, according to District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Amy Cornell.
Fifield was arrested July 27, when Morgan Hill police responded to calls from witnesses reporting that he was seen dragging his ailing dog down the sidewalk near Monterey Road and Second Street. The 25-pound Australian cattle dog named Snowflake was later determined to be suffering from cancer. Police said when they arrived at the scene, Snowflake’s paws and nails were bleeding from being dragged along the pavement.
Fifield, 59, faces felony charges of animal cruelty and resisting or deterring an officer, to which he pleaded not guilty in September. In a later hearing, Fifield’s attorney Milton Gonzalez said the defendant’s dependence on prescription drugs and alcohol should be addressed by the court before the criminal proceedings continue.
Fifield remains in custody at Santa Clara County jail. He made bail after his arrest in July, but was detained again Sept. 30 when he failed to show up at a scheduled hearing at South County Courthouse, when Judge Ray Cunningham issued a $500,000 warrant for his arrest. Police found him at the M & H Tavern the same day and brought him to his hearing.
Fifield’s wife, Marcy Powers, called a radio legal advice show Dec. 3 and asked the host, attorney Len Tillem, if her husband could take out a lien on the home that the couple own together in Morgan Hill in order to make bail. The phone call was broadcast on the air, and Tillem said Fifield could use his share of the home to get out of jail, but Powers should “dump him” if he does.
During the radio conversation, Powers said Fifield has a “major” alcohol problem, and he was intoxicated when the incident with Snowflake happened. She added that during the July incident, when confronted by police he “threatened their lives.”
Snowflake, who the couple rescued several years ago, suffers from cancer and a spinal birth defect that has left the dog permanently disabled, Powers explained in previous hearings. She testified in a bail hearing in September that Fifield and Snowflake enjoy each other’s company, and the dog misses him.
