A hearing was held at the Josephine County Courthouse Dec. 14 regarding Pawsitive K9 Solutions co-owner Danielle R. Brown-LaRue and her forfeiture of the abused and neglected animals found at the LaRue business and residence in September. While Brown-LaRue has not reappeared in Josephine County and an active warrant for her arrest has been issued by the authorities, her appearance wasn’t necessary in order for this hearing to continue.
Although it was a simple proceeding in the scheme of things, there was a brief instance of confusion surrounding the active warrant. While an initial warrant had been active and subsequently rescinded in order to add more charges to the list, the re-issued warrant appeared nowhere in the court’s documentation. Judge Matthew Galli was assured by the state that the warrant still existed, and he firmly chided the state, demanding that the warrant be documented accordingly before the next proceeding.
Laura Jansen, a supervisor for the Josephine County Animal Shelter who also handles finances, went on record to explain to the court that the cost of keeping the animals in the shelter’s care was approximately $840 a day, $25,000 a month, and was $72,059 in total at the time of the proceedings.
Because probable cause that Brown-LaRue had committed the offenses had been found in the indictment via her failure to appear before the court, the state ordered that the bond for the animals’ release be set at $122,059. It was also ordered that the animals be immediately forfeited into the care of the state unless the defendant posted the bond amount within the next 72 hours.
Although Danielle Brown-LaRue has remained on the run from the law, her partner Joseph LaRue, who is also facing a laundry list of animal abuse, neglect, and marijuana-related charges, has another hearing set for Jan. 5, 2023. This will not be the final legal proceeding regarding this case, as the case is set to go to trial in approximately two months.