Domestic Violence Victim Fights Parole for Serial Pet-Killer

When Bridgett Wright decided to end a relationship with Russell Swigart, he started bombarding her with threatening text messages. Then, one day, Swigart broke into Bridgett's Kentucky home, wielding a large hunting knife. He didn't find Bridgett, who had fortunately gone out of town, so he attacked her cats, stabbing the beloved pets to death. His text messages told Bridgett he wanted her dead and described his horrific deed. It seems likely that he intended her mutilated corpse to be the one lying on the floor. After being sentenced to twelve years jail for the pet killing, Swigart is up for parole after only two-and-a-half years — so Bridgett has launched a petition with almost 4,000 signatures thus far to keep him behind bars.

Domestic abusers use their victims' love for their pets against them, torturing or killing the cat or dog to hurt, intimidate, and threaten the owner. As Pamela Black writes on Change.org's Animals cause, the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has found that an animal abuser is five times more likely to go after a human target. And Swigart is a repeat offender: in another domestic violence conviction from 1997, he put his victim's cat in a shoebox and turned a shotgun on it after she moved out, then made her look at her pet's corpse while saying that he would killer her, too. In two other instances, he severely beat dogs or cats as an attack on the women owners. These are major warning signals that Swigart poses a serious danger to society

"At the risk of stating the obvious, people must be able to tell someone, 'I just want to be friends,' without placing themselves, their families, their pets, or other loved ones at risk of serious physical injury or death," comments Former Kenton County Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Justin Sanders, who has written urging the Kentucky Parole Board to make Swigart serve out his sentence.

During Swigart's trial, Bridgett set up a website devoted to the murdered cats, Mr. Frank and Piggy, and with updates on the case. Now, she's mobilizing to stop his parole. And she's turned to Change.org's petition tool because she wants to be able to show up at the hearing with thousands of signatures supporting her position.

Bridgett is quite reasonably concerned that if Swigart is released from prison, he'll come after her for revenge. "I have only one chance to convince them to deny his parole," she told Black. "If they decide to make him 'serve out' his sentence (as Justin Sanders, prosecutor, has recommended), I can have 10 years of peace, before I have to worry about him coming after me for revenge." Ironically, Swigart's parole hearing is on Valentine's Day, which means that Bridgett will be spending a day that's supposed to be about love fighting to keep a dangerous man behind bars.

Help Bridgett preserve her safety and keep a dangerous man behind bars by joining over 3,000 Change.org members in signing her petition calling upon the Kentucky Parole Board to reject Swigart's parole. Two-and-a-half years in prison is nowhere near long enough for a violent man guilty of the crimes Russell Swigart has committed.

Photo credit: Bridgett Wright