The judgement was made — Thompson would serve five years of probation.

Thanking the judge, red-eyed and smiling, Thompson embraced his loved ones and sat back down in the last row of the courtroom audience — appearing overcome by the emotional roller coaster of a case that spanned more than a year — and sobbed, with friends and family hanging on each other’s arms.

Within weeks of the one-year anniversary of his arraignment, Thompson received a sentence on Wednesday after pleading guilty to three of the original 13 felony counts of animal killing in both East Lansing and Meridian Township.

Aside from probation, Thompson is banned from having contact with animals, will be required to perform 400 hours of community service, maintain 30 hours per week employment and continue to receive psychological treatment throughout the duration of his probation, along with paying more than $5,000 in court fines and restitution.

It was only one year earlier when Thompson’s actions began to take their toll.

The beginning
It all began with an anonymous phone call.

Ingham County Animal Control Deputy Jodi LeBombard responded to a phone call on June 14, 2011, hinting that animal control should pay Thompson’s residence at Berrytree Apartments, 2950 Whitehall Drive, in Okemos, a visit.

LeBombard conducted the investigation and spoke with Thompson’s roommate, who told her at least 13 dogs had gone missing since he and Thompson lived together in about November 2010, she said during her testimony in 55th District Court on June 24, 2011.

While searching his apartment, court records said LeBombard found a bruised Italian greyhound puppy defecating blood in Thompson’s closet on June 21, 2011. The dog was transported to a veterinary clinic.

On June 24, 2011, a warrant was issued for his arrest, and Thompson turned himself in to Meridian Township police the next day.

Then LeBombard spoke with Thompson himself.

During the interview, Thompson admitted to abusing the dog, named Chloe No. 2, in the closet and killing many other dogs out of anger and frustration because the dogs wouldn’t come to him when he called them or urinated in his bed. He said the beatings — which included grabbing them by the neck and throwing them against walls or floors — would either kill the dogs instantly or they would die in a few days, LeBombard said.

Thompson said after a dog died, he placed its collars, outfits and other belongings in trash bags along with their bodies, crying all the way to the dumpster to throw it away.

Capture
On June 27, 2011, Thompson was arraigned, facing charges of killing five dogs in Okemos.
He was taken to Ingham County Jail with bond set at $100,000.

Two days later, new evidence led to Thompson’s arraignment for allegedly killing 10 dogs while living in Okemos between October 2010 and June 21, 2011, and another three in East Lansing while living in a condominium at 220 M.A.C. Ave. in September 2010. His total bond between East Lansing and Meridian Township rose to $600,000.

William Strampel, dean of MSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine, said in a previous interview Thompson was academically qualified to make the cut in the competitive field. But on June 23, 2011, Thompson officially was suspended from the university.

During her testimony, LeBombard said Thompson had been seeing a psychiatrist before his arrest for bipolar disorder. She said the medical professional told her Thompson’s education was everything to him, and she expressed concerns he would injure himself following suspension.

Uncovering abuse
Details emerged during a July 29, 2011, testimony from Thompson’s roommate Chelsea Grimes, who lived with him at 220 M.A.C. Ave. When Grimes asked Thompson to show her friend his new puppy, he told her the dog had “kicked the can.”

Grimes said she asked him to move out and was scared he would release his anger on her.

Ingham County Assistant Prosecutor Jeff Cruz said in court Grimes was contacted by Thompson’s psychiatrist and notified that he had made threats against her during a session.

During a July 31, 2011, testimony, Thompson’s friend Robert Albers said Thompson was almost relieved he was caught by authorities because the vicious cycle of abuse would come to an end.

As more interviews were conducted, an August 4, 2011, testimony from LeBombard described two more instances of abuse. When his puppy named Dolce defecated on his bedroom floor, Thompson forced the dog’s nose in the feces and smacked it until it died, she said. After another dog named Bently urinated on his bed, Thompson killed the puppy by throwing it against the wall, she said.

Judge Donald Allen then raised Thompson’s bond to $1 million.

Aside from Chloe No. 2, police did not recover any of the 13 dogs’ bodies.

On September 28, 2011, Thompson’s bond was reduced from $1 million to $50,000, by a motion from attorney Stacia Buchanan. After posting 10 percent of his bail, he was released from Ingham County Jail with three conditions: that he wear a GPS tether to track his location, that he lives with friends in Okemos and that he complies with a curfew between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. He had spent 107 days behind bars.

The next few months, Thompson’s charges were moved back and forth between district and circuit court.

But on April 23, Thompson pled guilty to three charges of animal killing in Lansing’s 30th Circuit Court.

Judgement day
Moments before Thompson entered the courtroom of 30th Judicial Circuit Court, whispers of “dog killer,” “greyhounds” and “thirteen” from the audience hung thick in the air.

Thompson took the stand, and as Buchanan stood side-by-side with her client, she reminded Manderfield that her client had no prior record and his friends and family expressed shock over his actions.

“He was a productive member of society before this happened,” she said. “This conduct was not expected of Mr. Thompson by anyone in his life.”

Buchanan said no one knows what the future holds for Thompson, and Ingham County Assistant Prosecutor Jeff Cruz said that was exactly the problem at hand.

“Based on other experiences, this is a very good predictor (of the future),” he said, adding he felt Thompson’s dog abuse could lead to incidents with humans.

Because Thompson’s killings were made in secret, Cruz said he felt Thompson would be difficult to monitor to prevent future “predatory” actions if he were set free. The Department of Corrections recommended a two to three year incarceration period, he said.

Thompson had a moment to speak before the court, describing the disgust, embarrassment and remorse he felt for his actions. He said he was shocked he let the abuse get as far as it did.

“I lost everything I was striving for in my life and have no one to blame but myself,” he said, apologizing to a number of groups, with MSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine on the list.

As he chocked back tears, Thompson said he does not consider himself a threat to anyone, promised before Manderfield he would never repeat his actions and asked for a second chance.

Then came Manderfield’s ruling: probation.

She said after reading letters from Thompson’s loved ones, along with animal rights individuals, many might believe life in prison would have been the appropriate call. But she said she did not feel the same.

“I’m not convinced society would be served by spending thousands (of dollars) to incarcerate (you) … I do not see valid reasons to sentence you to prison,” she said.

Jamie McAloon-Lampman, director of Ingham County Animal Control and Shelter who was in attendance at the sentencing, expressed dissatisfaction with the results and said she had hoped for a sentence of at least 18 months of incarceration.

As Thompson considers moving back to Arizona to live with his parents, McAloon-Lampman said she worried the state would be too overwhelmed with their own probations to monitor Thompson. Either way, she said she was happy the case came to a close.

“We’re glad we got some closure on this,” she said. “It’s not the closure we were expecting, but it’s over.”

Thompson left the courtroom on Wednesday morning with hands uncuffed and an arm slung around Buchanan, hoping to leave a year of pain and heartache behind him.