By:Chris Munzing
Aries, a 3-year old pit bull, has been accused of killing at least half a dozen cats on his block. The now-famous dog now finds itself at the Long Beach Animal Shelter, where it will remain until at least May 21, when its owner, Maryellyn Feiler, will go to court. The dog is confined to the shelter because it was loose without a leash, and had no license.
Police Commissioner Thomas Sofield Sr. said that the police department was investigating Aries' possible involvement in the death of the cats. That investigation is ongoing.
The story reached the news media after a man named Joe (who declined to give his last name), the father of the 9-year-old owner of one of the cats, Cupcake, contacted the New York Post. "I didn't really think they'd do anything with it, and then it came out in the paper," Joe said. The story ran under the headline "Killer Canine."
By last Friday, the story had spread. Joe said he was stunned by the attention it had received. "Somebody called and told me that [WCBS-AM] picked it up, and then 1010 WINS came to the house," Joe said. "WINS told us it was their number two story of the day, behind [Secretary of State Donald] Rumsfeld. It must've been a slow news day. It was a media circus."
WCBS-AM's news director, Tim Schelb, declined to be quoted, but indicated that the human interest appeal of the story was likely a factor in the amount of attention it received. Ben Mevorach, news director at 1010 WINS, did not return calls for comment.
During the day on Friday, Joe said that he and his family were confronted with cameras from every local network. He said that most members of the media were respectful, but a few weren't. "Two of them tried to broadcast live in front of the house, but we said no," he said. "I don't think it deserved so much coverage."
Joe said he first contacted the Post because he realized that Long Beach officials, while extremely helpful, could only do so much. Joe didn't want another family to go through what his daughter went through, or worse. "I felt if I didn't stand up and do something, a small child was going to get mauled," he said.
City Manager Glen Spiritis said that he would never have expected the story to get the attention it received "in a million years." Spiritis attributed the nearly dozen interviews he gave - and the news vans circling the city last Friday - to the human interest of the story, and that it was a slow news day.
"It's pretty sad that we uncover major wrongdoing in other departments, and what leads the news is a dog killing a cat," Spiritis said. He added that the fact that Feiler is involved with the Democratic Party was a contributing factor in the media frenzy.
Spiritis said that the city is investigating whether Feiler, who headed the community development office until a few months ago, has used her political influence to have Aries released from the shelter in the past. "It'll be a shame if this little girl lost her cat because of that," Spiritis said.
