A Central Islip man charged with throwing darts at his 2-year-old pit bull and tying her mouth shut with wire is not likely to get the dog back, Suffolk police said.

John Bayliss, 39, was charged with animal cruelty after Suffolk police responding to an unrelated domestic disturbance call found scars on the dog, Emma.

Bayliss' criminal record includes convictions for weapons possession and criminal trespass. He served 4 years in prison for assaulting his son.

  (Photo courtesy of the Suffolk County Police)  Emma, and a second dog, Lexie, who was not harmed, remained at the Islip Town animal shelter. Both were doing well, said shelter supervisor Joanne Daly.

It is not known whether Emma and Lexie will be put up for adoption.  "I can't imagine he's ever going to get these dogs back," said Suffolk police Lt. James Gruenfelder.

Bayliss, who also was charged with third-degree menacing in connection with the domestic dispute, remained in Suffolk County jail on $5,000 bail.

Update 12/31/08: Suffolk County Police have arrested a Central Islip man for repeatedly abusing his 2-year-old pit bull over the past year.

Third Precinct Crime Section Officers Ted Martinez and John Oakley discovered dog abuse when they responded to 6 Bayonne Ave., Central Islip, on December 30 while conducting a follow-up investigation on an unrelated incident. When they arrived at 4 p.m., the officers noticed unsafe living conditions and notified the Islip Town Fire Marshall and the Islip Town Investigator, who responded to the scene and conducted an investigation into the conditions.

The Crime Section officers further learned that a man living in the house had two dogs, one of which he beat regularly. Animal Control Officers from Islip Town responded and took the dogs for veterinary care. Detective Llobell from the Suffolk County S.P.C.A. along with a Third Squad detective assisted the investigation.

Bayliss, of 6 Bayonne Ave., was located in Ronkonkoma. Bayliss was charged with Animal Cruelty for the repeated abuse of his pit bull, Emma. He was also charged with Menacing 3rd Degree for an unrelated incident. Bayliss was arraigned in First District Court in Central Islip on December 31.

Update 1/6/09:  Bayliss was house manager in a 17-bedroom single family home being operated illegally as a rooming house, the Town of Islip said yesterday.

Its residents and owners described the home, at 6 Bayonne Ave., as a "sober house," but if it was, it wasn't a successful one, Islip investigator Jason Mistretta said.

Bottles of vodka were visible in the rooms, he said. And the house manager, John Bayliss - kept beer in a refrigerator in his office, Mistretta said.

Islip yesterday issued four summonses to the property owners, George Luksch and Anthony Avena, both of Wantagh, for illegally renting units in the single-family home, adding a second kitchen and converting a garage without a permit, Mistretta said. Seventeen people were renting rooms or beds there, he said.

The investigator also issued warnings to the owners for absence of smoke detectors and for unsafe wiring.

George Luksch, who owns a plumbing business in Wantagh, said the property had operated as a sober house - a residence for recovering addicts - even before he and Avena bought it three years ago. He said he believed the use was legal.

"I have the attorneys looking into that right now," he said, declining to comment further.

The state does not certify or oversee sober homes that provide only housing and no clinical services. Suffolk police investigating a domestic dispute Dec. 30 discovered evidence of animal abuse and illegal apartments in the home, police said.

Emma and Lexie, another pit bull owned by Bayliss but not abused, were taken for veterinary care and are now at the Islip Animal Shelter, where they are doing well, Islip spokeswoman Amy Basta said.  "They're eating and playing," she said. Because the investigation is ongoing, she said she doesn't know if the dogs will be put up for adoption.

Bayliss, who faces charges of animal cruelty and third-degree menacing in an unrelated domestic dispute, remained at Suffolk County Jail in Riverhead yesterday, on $5,000 bail or $15,000 bond. His next court appearance is scheduled for today in First District Court in Central Islip, the Suffolk sheriff's office said.

Reference:

Newsday