Madison County man faces multiple charges after allegedly setting fire to dog’s face
A Granite City man, already facing charges of aggravated battery after a motorcyclist suffered a broken leg when he was hit by a car in June, now is being accused of animal cruelty after his neighbor’s dog suffered burns to his face last week.
John T. Turcott, 68, is accused of throwing gasoline at a dog named “Rocky” and then throwing a burning item toward the dog, according to a news release from Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine.
“Rocky” suffered the burns on Dec. 5, according to the charging documents.
Turcott’s attorney, Thomas Hildebrand, said Monday he is awaiting the results of a court-ordered psychological examination to see if Turcott is fit to stand trial.
Haine’s office has asked for the revocation of Turcott’s bail and a judge has ordered that Turcott remain in custody until a hearing is conducted, according to the news release.
Turcott remained in custody as of Monday.
In the case involving the dog, Turcott also was charged with arson in connection with a fire damaging a wooden privacy fence.
Turcott was earlier accused of intentionally crashing a car into a motorcyclist on June 22 on Morrison Road in Granite City, according to the news release and charging documents.
Along with the battery charge, Turcott was cited with failure to report an accident involving personal injury or death, leaving the scene of an accident involving damage to a vehicle, failure to report an accident to police, driving too fast for conditions, improper lane usage and operation of uninsured motor vehicle causing bodily harm.
In October, Turcott was charged with threatening a public official. He is accused of threatening to attack a Madison County Sheriff’s Office sergeant, according to court records.
After he was charged with the animal cruelty offense, Turcott was charged on Thursday with nine counts of possession of a firearm with a revoked Firearm Owners Identification, or FOID, card.
The firearms cited in these charges include a DPMS Model A-15 .223-caliber rifle, a Smith & Wesson Premier 32 revolver, a Glock 19 9mm handgun, a Glock 26 9mm handgun, a Smith & Wesson Bodyguard .380-caliber handgun, a Savage Arms Springfield Model 67 H 12-gauge pump action shotgun, an Ithaca Model 37 12-gauge pump action shotgun, a J. Stevens Arms Company Model 58 .410 bolt action shotgun.
