Charges dropped against Pet Rescue owner

DuPage County prosecutors have dismissed charges against one of two women accused of hoarding and mistreating animals at a no-kill shelter in Bloomingdale, a case that drew the ire of animal rights activists across the region.

Authorities said Friday the misdemeanor charges against former Pet Rescue owner Dale Armon were dismissed earlier this month after co-defendant Penny Horak signed a sworn affidavit indicating Armon hadn’t visited the facility in years and had no involvement in its day-to-day operations.

“Based on that affidavit, we felt we couldn’t prove our case,” said Paul Darrah, spokesman for State’s Attorney Robert Berlin. “Part of our case rested on proving intent, and she hadn’t been in the facility since 2004.”

Horak, 71, pleaded guilty last April to a misdemeanor charge alleging she violated her duties while managing Pet Rescue at 151 N. Bloomingdale Road, and was sentenced to two years’ court supervision. The shelter was later stripped of its license, and its animals sent to other facilities.

Armon, 76, opened the shelter in 1973. The nonprofit venture was the focus of several state investigations and civil court proceedings before it began to further unravel in 2008, when Horak, the facility’s director, was accused of mistreating a cat that was subsequently euthanized.

Volunteers working undercover also turned over information to authorities detailing “deplorable conditions” and “widespread neglect.” Eventually, Armon was implicated, too.

In 2009, the case sparked protests from activists who complained that animals were “rotting in cages” as Horak and Armon awaited trial through repeated delays.

A judge later ordered the transfer of nearly 200 cats, dogs and other animals from the facility to other Illinois shelters, and Pet Rescue was stripped of its operating license.

Armon had been scheduled to stand trial Monday, Feb. 28. Neither she nor her attorney could immediately be reached for comment Friday afternoon.