TOMS RIVER - Matthew Teymant escaped jail time for leaving 64 animals to die in his foreclosed home, but the state Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has filed 48 civil complaints against Teymant and his wife, Amanda, seeking as much as $48,000.
NJSPCA spokesman Matthew Stanton said Teymant, 30, was served Friday night with 24 complaints against himself and 24 against Amanda Teymant that could bring fines ranging from $250 to $1,000.
"We usually file charges both civilly and criminally at once, but we thought the case was so clear to us criminally (that) we stayed away from the civil part and didn't pile it on," Stanton said Monday afternoon.
Both Teymants pleaded guilty to animal cruelty in connection with the grisly April 2008 discovery of the dead animals in the home.
Stanton said Teymant's sentence of five years' probation and 250 hours of community service was a joke and sends the wrong message to the public. Amanda Teymant, 23, was accepted into a program that will result in charges being dropped after 18 months. She must perform 100 hours of community service. As part of their sentences, neither is allowed near animals.
NJSPCA Sgt. Thomas Yanisko said the 64 dead animals found in the home included dogs, cats, hamsters, guinea pigs and turtles, all in different stages of decomposition. The scene was macabre as authorities carried the remains of animals from the small home and used wire cutters to remove carcasses from cages.
Teymant worked as a dispatcher with the Toms River Police Department. In February, police Chief Michael Mastronardy said Teymant never returned to work and had remained on suspension after the discovery last year. Teymant submitted his resignation from the department in February, Mastronardy said.
Stanton added that the NJSPCA relies on prosecutors when the agency files charges. In this case, Stanton said, Assistant Ocean County Prosecutor Michael Abatemarco asked that Teymant receive jail time. Superior Court Judge Barbara A. Villano disagreed with Abatemarco's request, Stanton said.
"It was a slam dunk in (Teymant's) favor. We got screwed and the prosecutor got screwed. The prosecutor had a deal here and the judge turned around and got lenient. The guy got a total pass," Stanton said. "The really sad thing about this is all he had to do was pick up the phone and have someone come in and help."
Stanton said Villano's decision to impose a lighter sentence involved the Teymants having no criminal record and the fact that Matthew Teymant was a father to two young boys.
Abatemarco did not return a call for comment Monday.
Dana Campbell, a former prosecutor who is now an attorney with the Animal Legal Defense Fund, based in California, said the organization has been following Teymant's case and is outraged - but not surprised - by Villano's ruling.
"This is one of the worst-sounding cases ever - to have this many dead animals and such a light sentence," Campbell said.
New Jersey is ranked in the bottom tier by the Animal Legal Defense Fund for state animal protection laws in 2008, Campbell said. The animal protection laws of every state are based on their relative strength and general comprehensiveness.
Some animal-cruelty offenses even fall under disorderly conduct laws in New Jersey, with fines starting at $250, she said. Campbell said most humane organizations don't have the resources to go after offenders civilly and it's admirable that the SPCA is seeking damages.
Campbell said judges who are not educated about animal hoarding usually make lenient rulings in cases such as the Teymants'. The fact that the Teymants had no criminal record, and that hoarders see themselves as trying to take care of the animals, could influence a judge's decision, Campbell said.
The Humane Society of the United States defines an animal hoarder as a person who has more animals than he or she can properly care for. Other defining characteristics are hoarders' denial of their inability to care for the animals and their failure to grasp the effect their neglect has on the animals, the household and the human occupants of the dwelling.
"Animal Legal Defense Fund offers free training to judges and the courts and would be happy to come down and talk about this. It sounds like they may need something like that," she said.
A lawyer for the couple said Matthew Teymant was only trying to care for needy animals, but he and his wife became overwhelmed when they had two children. They abandoned the house about seven months before the gruesome discovery.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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