Couple facing up to five years in jail for sexually abusing their dog

A dog is a man’s best friend. But there are healthy boundaries to the relationship that a couple of Kentucky sickos have badly overstepped.

This week, Nolene Renee Horn, a former elementary school teacher, and Christopher S. Jones are looking at potential prison time after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a poor dog.

The case, which was first reported back in June, is the first of its kind in Kentucky since the state officially banned bestiality in 2019, according to the attorney general’s office.

Both Horn and Jones pleaded guilty to two counts of sex crimes against an animal, which is a Class D felony, according to Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron. They also pleaded guilty to torturing a dog, which is a misdemeanor.

Horn, 44, and Jones, 50, were accused of having sexual contact with a dog on November 3, 2019, according to court documents cited by the Kentucky Herald Leader.

The incident took place in Mason County, which is located in the northeastern part of the state along the border with Ohio.

Cameron’s office stated in a news release that the “Maysville Police Department investigated the case, and the Boone County Sheriff’s office provided forensic support.” The state’s Office of Special Prosecutions handled the case.

A Mason County grand jury formally indicted Horn and Jones on June 10, 2020, on two charges each and warrants were issued for their arrest. When announcing the indictment for sex crimes against an animal and animal torture, Cameron described the charges as “heinous and obscene” and that they “cannot go unpunished.”

Sentencing is scheduled for February 22, 2021. The charges of sexual crimes against an animal can carry up to five years in prison and charges of torture of a dog could carry 120 days in prison and a $500 fine.