Closing Argument: A Kitty Litter-er Finds Herself in a Cat-astrophe
Email15 hours.
That’s how long Lola the cat spent in the garbage bin outside her home in Central England.
After a desperate search, her owners eventually heard her muffled meows and rescued the 4-year-old kitty.
Luckily, they had previously installed a security camera in their front yard.
When they checked the footage expecting to see pranksters or a drunk, it was a most unlikely offender.
She’s Mary Bale, 45, gray-haired, a bank clerk from Coventry, 95 miles northwest of London.
After Lola’s owners slapped the surveillance video online, hundreds of thousands watched as Bale pets the cat, then grabs it by the scruff of its neck and tosses it into the trash bin.
The video sparked an outcry on Facebook and YouTube and police now guard Bale’s house after she received death threats.
She has apologized for her actions, telling the Sun newspaper, “I don't know what came over me, but I suddenly thought it would be funny to put it in the wheelie bin, which was right beside me."
But she also added: “I really don't see what everyone is getting so excited about — it's just a cat."
Police have not yet charged Bale with an offense.
But the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is launching an investigation.
By the way, Lola, said her owners, is in good shape.
Tonight we ask you, should Mary Bale face any punishment for dumping Lola in the garbage?
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arrest her!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! animal cruelty!!!!!!!
Posted by: brad | August 26, 2010, 12:17 am 12:17 am
Yes she should be punished
Posted by: Jean | August 26, 2010, 12:17 am 12:17 am
It might had been safer in there concedering all that traffic going by.
Posted by: deb | August 26, 2010, 12:28 am 12:28 am
woman needs to be referred for psychiatric evaluation
Posted by: gerry | August 26, 2010, 1:12 am 1:12 am
i think the cat tossing woman has big psych issues. she said it “just came over her” that it would be funny. i CAN understand that since I have had cats since I was 4 yrs old and confess to getting an urge to place them in a paper bag for a few mins. on a few occassions. But if you watch the vid she looks all around and scopes out the scene i dont think this was just something to do for a funny lark or she would have let the cat out after a couple mins. to walk away and let the cat just rot in the bin when the cat couldve died-thats not on the same level as having a bit of fun for a few moments at the cat’s expense without harm to the cat. there WAS a risk to the cat and i think the woman took delite in walking away and leaving the cat . as it was the cat was in the bin 15 hrs!!!! fine her, arrest her and give her psych eval.
Posted by: gerry | August 26, 2010, 1:23 am 1:23 am
Put her in a trash bin for 15 hours. Who cares? It’s just a cruel old woman with a possibility for being a psychopath. Isn’t that how murderers start? Picking on the family pet?
Posted by: Jenny | August 26, 2010, 2:55 am 2:55 am
Punishment does not mean death punishment, that’s taking it a bit too far but she could do with some jail time & hefty fines just so she learns that animal abuse is NOT acceptable.
Posted by: Geri | August 26, 2010, 3:49 am 3:49 am
She should be arrested for animal cruelty; made to pay a fine; put on probation for at least one year; and made to do community service for at least one year at an animal care facility.
Posted by: Camille Dudley | August 26, 2010, 4:01 am 4:01 am
Yes, she should be penalized! It was cruel. She has no impulse control. Did she come back and check on the cat, or let it out? no. She’s obviously a sicko.
Posted by: Justine | August 26, 2010, 6:38 am 6:38 am
She should be thrown in the garbage as well, left there for 1 day and then ask her: “Hey darling, how are you feeling today – a little crazy?”
Posted by: florin | August 26, 2010, 7:08 am 7:08 am
I have to agree. She is not a kid teasing a cat, she clearly thinks about what she’s doing, drops the cat in and quickly makes her get away. Her comment that it’s just a cat shows that she has no feeling toward animals. Imagine if this were a daily occurrence how many pets would die by accident being left to fend for themselves. Add a heat wave into the mix and the cat might have died before it was rescued. People treat animals like they would like to treat people. And psychopaths (and I’m not saying she’s that extreme) pratice first on pets. She should be fined, educated and monitored. And perhaps visited by a sniffer dog to see if there are any pets on her property who weren’t so lucky.
Posted by: Graeme | August 26, 2010, 8:23 am 8:23 am
Do you really think it’s appropriate for the headline writer to call poor Lola “Kitty Litter”? The cat is not the trash. The monster that put the cat in the bin is.
Posted by: Samson | August 26, 2010, 10:41 am 10:41 am
I think someone should put her in a dumpster, leave her there for 15 hrs. and see how funny she thinks it is. She is just one of millions of cruel people in this world. If you don’t care about animals just stay away from them. You need to be punished for what you did, if not in this world, then the next, you will get yours. I am so glad they caught you on tape!! HA-HA-Funny isn’t it!!
Posted by: Rhonda | August 26, 2010, 10:48 am 10:48 am
Yes, she should most defintatley be punished. That kitty could have died. She should be fined if not be put in jail. How would she like it if we threw her in a dumpster and she had now way out?
Posted by: Jenny | August 26, 2010, 11:46 am 11:46 am
She is a waste of space
Posted by: Chloe | August 26, 2010, 12:08 pm 12:08 pm
As it’s now well known, she works for the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). I would hope that RBS truly understands the outrage and bad publicity that this has caused, and that if they continue to keep her on as an employee, they will appear to be supporting her inhumane action.
Posted by: MYinNCalifornia | August 26, 2010, 12:59 pm 12:59 pm
Yes, she should be punished! No question about it. Unbelieveable! It’s just a cat? How about stuffing her in the trash can and say it’s just a lady and see how she likes it. I’m glad the owners found their cat and that it’s OK.
Posted by: Lea | August 26, 2010, 2:39 pm 2:39 pm
Yes, she should be punished! The cat could have been picked up by the trash truck and injured or killed. And it was without water for all that time. That’s animal cruelty. For her to say, “It was just a cat” shows she has no empathy for helpless creatures. She is a mean, horrible person!
Posted by: Nina | August 26, 2010, 3:22 pm 3:22 pm
Definately cruelty to animals – go to jail – big fine – and community service cleaning cat cages at her local animal shelter for a couple of years
Posted by: Steven | August 26, 2010, 3:26 pm 3:26 pm
It puzzles me always when people say “It’s just a Cat” or any other animal. Are they THAT ignorant? Don’t they realize that they are actually saying I don’t care about the people who love them? God help us all!
Posted by: Marisa | August 26, 2010, 5:23 pm 5:23 pm
She should definitely be prosecuted. It was a sickening act, just heartless. She is at the very least a sociopath. She seems so calm in the video, one can only imagine that this isn’t the first time she’s done something like this.
Posted by: Karen | August 26, 2010, 5:24 pm 5:24 pm
She said she thought it would be funny? I suggest she be put in the same trash receptical for the same period of time and see how she likes it.
Posted by: Bill | August 26, 2010, 8:25 pm 8:25 pm
Throw her a parade! The only good cat is a ……”
Posted by: Kat | August 27, 2010, 12:24 am 12:24 am