Man Accused Of Beating Girlfriend's Dog With A Belt

A Hells Kitchen man has been charged with beating his girlfriend's dog with a belt and blinding it in one eye when she was out of town for an acting gig. Joseph Graves, 30, is accused of abusing Broadway actress Ashley Yeater's four-year-old Yorkshire terrier when he was supposed to be pet-sitting the pooch on Jan. 16.

While Yeater—who has had roles in "The Producers" on Broadway and touring productions of "Cats" and "Footloose"—was away, Graves allegedly kicked and whipped the dog with a belt, then waited two days before bringing the animal to a veterinarian, according to the Post. The dog, which is named Emmet, was treated for six broken ribs and had his left eye removed. He is currently recovering with one of Yeater's relatives.

"The dog suffered traumatic injuries and could have easily died from those injuries if he waited much longer," said ASPCA spokesman Joseph Pentangelo. "The pet was nearly killed because a person couldn't control his temper." According to the Daily News, Graves was arrested Monday and charged with aggravated animal cruelty and criminal mischief. He is due back in court on April 27.

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By Ben Muessig in News on February 2, 2010 5:27 PM

Comments [rss]

brooklynmouthoff

Dear Joseph Graves,

You're a piece of trash. I'd pay any amount of money to watch you getting your ass kicked by someone 15 times your size.

potsmoker

the funny thing about these media hyped boyfriend beat my dog or cat stories....is that if the guy just walked into ANY veterrinarians office and demanded an instant euthanasia shot, it would be done quickly with no waiting, better to charge that credit card or get some cash for the transaction.

why beat a dog, frankly in some cultures around the world and even our own, quality of life is cheap, i saw a news article about animal rescue organizations feeding stray dogs in haiti amidst the earthquake ruins, these people should be roasted on a spit and fed to the stray homeless humans amidst the earthquake damage.

get the dog a shot, there will be NO criminal charges since there was no ABUSE, and the resulting liabilities will be CIVIL for the actual value of the dog not the perceived love value of the owner.

if its a pound dog, your out of luck for $, but it goes far in screwing over your significant other to have it go to doggie heavan with help from a vet.

brooklynmouthoff

Hi Potsmoker.

So your solution to abusing dogs, is to just kill them instead.

You, my friend, are a moron.

The Edge

How about we whip you with a belt and blinding you in one eye with it while we're at it?

And what the fuck does Haiti have to do with this story?

gerryvisco

Did the girlfriend get rid of this moronic brute? I have the perfect solution, however. Graves should be forced to donate one of his eyes for the dog. It's only fair and it's an eye for an eye, basic Biblical justice.

maatthias

Nice one! You beat me to the biblical "eye for an eye".

blakewallington

Actors and actresses are too self centered to properly care for a pet.

brooklynmouthoff

Seriously? I'm so impressed by your open-mindedness.

Good job.

Pachinko

So what you guys are saying is that because the news is 'only' about a little dog that isn't important. What if this idiot 'Graves' didn't have a dog to vent his anger on? Who would get it in the neck?

I can't believe that you people think that beating a small animal is fine just as long as it isn't human. Where is the humanity here? If I ever came across this Joseph Graves guy, I would happily give him a taste of his own medicine... and give you something 'interesting' to read about!!!

handsomedevil

"Now, was there a pet in the house? Yes, a pet, like a dog or a budgie or a gerbil. You see, what I need is 'PC Plod rescues Harry the Hamster from House of Horror'. All right... well, that's a pity, you see, no pets, no human angle."

Snoopy

Strange as it seems, if you eliminated the perky ears of the dog in the photo and took a picture of it from the neck up, it would look exactly like half of the women that live on the upper east side with a trust fund.

Ishtar

Dude is clearly psychotic.

brooklynmouthoff

He's not psychotic. He's an *sshole.

Snoopy

Any update on the relationship between Ashley Yeater and Joseph Graves or will I have to wait for the new edition of Page Six?

Pachinko

Joseph Graves is a dead man.

JacqueMehoff

last time it was the guy who beat a cat to death,

this dog got lucky. little dogs and men = bad news when left alone.

Mordicai

Look at that smug dog, though! LOOK AT HIM SMIRKING AT US ALL! LAUGHING AT US! HE HAD IT COMING!

Quimbo

Next time on girls who date a**holes . . .

Kojak

I don't understand. I had my ass beaten with a belt when I was little when I did something bad, but this dog gets pussywhipped like once with a wet noodle and Gothamist & the Daily News jumps on the story? What gives??

Iphie

How big were you when you had your ass beaten as a child? This dog probably weighs less than most newborns weigh. Had your beatings left you near death, I do believe the person doing the beating would have faced serious jail time.