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HERRIMAN — A Herriman man convicted earlier this year of killing his dog is facing a new criminal charge accusing him of breaking the leg of another dog.
Christopher Joseph Prows, 31, was charged Wednesday in 3rd District Court with torture of a companion animal, a third-degree felony.
Herriman police responded to Prows' residence on June 20 on a report of an injured puppy. Officers arrived to find "Chief," a 20-week-old golden doodle "limping on a patio without shelter," according to charging documents. No one answered the door at that time.
Police returned to the apartment the next day and made contact with the family. After observing swelling in the puppy's leg and feeling his hind legs, officers took the dog to a veterinarian "because Chief was in immediate need of veterinary care that Prows failed to provide," the charges allege.
At the vet clinic, it was confirmed that one of Chief's legs was broken, police said.
Prows claimed he accidentally dropped Chief on June 18 while holding its hind legs, according to the charges.
A neighbor told detectives that Prows was seen on at least one occasion yanking Chief up the stairs when the dog was not compliant, the charges state. Then, on June 15, the neighbor said she heard the puppy yelping and then did not see it again. When she asked Prows' wife about what happened on June 18, she told the neighbor, "Christopher was giving Chief a bath. He didn't like it and was behaving bad. So he snapped and put him in a hold."
Another witness told police that he "heard what sounded like Prows hitting Chief after Chief scratched Prows during his bath," according to the charging documents.
The new charge comes while Prows is on probation for killing the family's previous dog, "Yoda." In that case, police say Prows became frustrated with Yoda when the dog would not go onto the balcony.
"Prows stated he lost his temper and hit Yoda three times," resulting in his death, according to court documents.
He was charged on Aug. 16, 2021, with aggravated cruelty to an animal, a third-degree felony. In January, Prows entered into a plea in abeyance, pleading guilty to the charge. In exchange, the charge would be reduced to a class A misdemeanor in three years if he abided by the terms of his probation, which included not breaking any new laws.
Prosecutors have requested that Prows by held on his new charge in the Salt Lake County Jail without bail pending trial.
