'Sammy' Abusers' Appeal to be Heard Tuesday

Keith and Shauna Morgan, the Brick couple who pleaded guilty to charges of abusing a cocker spaniel named Sammy, will make their last-ditch effort to avoid jail time on Tuesday.

A court administrator at the Ocean County Superior Court Criminal Division confirmed to Patch on Monday that Judge James Blaney will hear the couple's appeal of a six month-long jail term at 3 p.m.

The Morgans, both of Sawmill Road, were sentenced in November to six months in jail, plus $1,000 in fines and $13,500 in restitution to a veterinary clinic after admitting to animal cruelty charges.

The Morgans filed an appeal shortly after Municipal Court Judge Robert Lepore made his ruling and have remained free since the matter has been pending.

The Morgans, before entering their guilty pleas, had been charged with neglecting and starving the older, white cocker spaniel to the point where the dog could not move due to its hair being so overgrown and matted.

The pair were charged after Keith Morgan brought Sammy to the Monmouth County SPCA in a bag, saying he found the dog on the side of the road in Wall Township. Eventually, investigators found out the dog belonged to the Morgans.

In handing down his sentence, Lepore said the couple should serve jail time due to their "depraved, cruel and heinous conduct."

At sentencing, the attorney for the Morgans, Marc B. Schram of Hazlet, blamed Sammy's condition partly on Keith Morgan's health issues.