A federal judge has ordered an Alabama man to serve 120 months in prison and pay more than half a million dollars to cover the costs of caring for 78 pit bull-type dogs rescued from an organized dog-fighting operation.
Carlton Lenard Adams, who maintained properties in both Bessemer and Adger, pleaded guilty in January to four counts of possessing dogs for fighting and two counts of possessing firearms as a convicted felon. His prison sentence was handed down last month, and the restitution order of $548,449 was finalized yesterday.
Federal court records indicate that the 78 dogs rescued during the investigation represent the second-highest number of animals ever taken from a single defendant in a U.S. federal case. When law enforcement officers raided Adams’ three properties—two located in Bessemer and one in Adger—they found many of the dogs suffering from extreme neglect, with some bearing deep scars and fresh injuries from fighting…