A victory for cats everywhere today (rachel citron's flickr)

Lordtyshon Garret was convicted of brutally beating Madea, his mother-in-law's kitty, with an umbrella. Garret poked, prodded, and eventually punctured the cat's lung in October 2009. He faces four years in prison for aggravated cruelty to animals. In a separate case, Angelo Monderoy was convicted of setting fire to his super's cat, Tommy Two Times, in October 2008. During the trial, Monderoy testified that he committed the crime because he was "bored." He was convicted of animal cruelty and burglary (he was cleared of second-degree arson), and he now faces up to 15 years in prison when he's sentenced next month.

Monderoy, a Trinidadian immigrant who was 18 when he was arrested for the crime, also faces deportation procedures. His lawyer argued that the burglary charge was senseless, because the apartment where the fire took place was vacant. "I believe the verdict is repugnant," the lawyer said...which is exactly the word we'd use for somebody who set a cat on fire out of boredom.