LAGRANGE, Ga. — A 32-year-old LaGrange man is behind bars after a jury convicted him on dog fighting charges this week.
A Troup County jury found Demetris Deshan Kennedy, also referred to as "Junt," guilty on the dog fighting charges as well as weapon and drug charges.
According to a news release from Coweta County District Attorney John Herbert Cranford Jr., a months-long drug distribution investigation took place last year.
When authorities executed a search warrant on Feb. 22, 2019, at a home off of Bonaventure Drive, they found much more than they expected, Cranford said.
Authorities said they found three firearms, body armor, ammunition, and approximately 11 ounces of marijuana inside the home.
In the backyard, five pit bull-type dogs, each chained to the ground with logging chains were found. In a shed in the backyard, investigators recovered dog fighting training paraphernalia, including a homemade treadmill and spring pole.
Three of the dogs had relatively fresh wounds consistent with dog fighting, they said.
The logging chains that tethered the three dogs to the ground each weighed more than 10 pounds, the district attorney said.
Dogs should be treated with love as pets, not as gladiators that fight to the death," Cranford said. "As other prosecutions in our community have shown, dealing drugs while possessing firearms ultimately ends with violence."
Kennedy's prior felony convictions from Troup County include drug charges in 2007 and 2009.
Sentencing is scheduled for March 30.
"We are thankful the jury held this defendant accountable for his dangerous drug dealing and his abuse of dogs," said Cranford.
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