Accused of poisoning her roommate’s dog so that it had to be euthanized, a Rock Springs woman faces one count of felony animal cruelty.
The charge is punishable by up to two years in prison and up to $5,000 in fines.
Allie Erspamer, who is the daughter of Rock Springs Police Chief Bill Erspamer, is slated to appear in court Nov. 26 for a preliminary hearing, where she will have the chance to argue that the state does not have probable cause to keep prosecuting her.
Allie Erspamer, 19, remains out of jail on a signature bond, her court file says.
Her attorney Charles Barnum did not respond by publication time to a Monday morning request for comment. Erspamer did not return a Monday morning voicemail request for comment.
Chief Erspamer declined Monday to comment.
Though Hallie Blake, 19, alerted Sweetwater County Sheriff’s investigators in April that she believed her pit bull Lilly had been poisoned — leading to Allie Erspamer’s charges — Hallie told Cowboy State Daily on Monday that she hopes the public doesn’t retaliate against the police chief over his daughter’s allegations.
“One thing I feel strongly about is how much hate her dad is getting,” said Hallie. “I understand that (news stories) saying ‘chief of police’s daughter’ catches the eye, and people in the comments (seize on it). But Bill’s always been great to me. And I know Bill’s a good person.”
Hallie continued: “I feel bad because he’s getting hate for something he didn’t do.”
Recusals
Though charged Oct. 10 in Rock Springs Circuit Court, the court case is being handled by Sublette County officials due to recusals of locals.
Rock Springs Circuit Court Judge Craig Jones recused himself and arranged for Pinedale Circuit Court Judge John LaBuda to preside over the case’s preliminary stage.
Sublette County Attorney Clayton Melinkovich is prosecuting, rather than Sweetwater County Attorney Danny Erramouspe.
Hallie Blake called the Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office on April 18 to say she believed her dog Lilly had been poisoned, says an evidentiary affidavit Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Deputy Casey Watkins signed Sept. 26.
Watkins’ affidavit includes the investigation and reports of SCSO Detective Sean Snyder, it says.
Lilly was a pit bull, approximately 1 year old, that Hallie Blake rescued from the local animal control agency, according to Hallie’s interview.
Allie Erspamer moved in as Hallie’s new roommate in late January of this year and expressed distaste for the dog, the affidavit relates.
In mid-March, the dog suffered seizures.
In that same time, Erspamer said the dog had bitten her, not breaking the skin, wrote Watkins.
Shalane Blake, Hallie’s mother, said in her own Monday interview with Cowboy State Daily that Lilly had left a red mark on Erspamer’s lip.
Shalane voiced doubts about whether this was due to a bite or the dog “rearing up” or being defensive because of the treatment it allegedly received from Erspamer.
‘Could She Have Been Poisoned?'
The dog grew sicker, the deputy wrote.
Blake took the dog to see a veterinarian and ultimately, the vet recommended euthanizing the dog.
“We paid thousands of dollars in vet bills trying to get her saved,” Shalane said in her interview. “The vet had asked, ‘Could she have been poisoned?’”
At the time, added Shalane, that seemed outlandish.
In the last two weeks of Lilly’s life, the dog would collapse and drool so much it seemed she was vomiting water, said Shalane.
“I can’t even get the images out of my head,” she added.
Veterinary personnel told the Blakes they could put the dog down, or take her to Salt Lake City for around $15,000 worth of dialysis, said Shalane.
Hallie Blake felt that a puppy with that many health issues was bound to lead a life of torment, and it was time to put her down to end the suffering, her mother related.
Bleach And Antifreeze
Dr. Margaret White, the vet, confirmed to Wakins that the dog was suffering from kidney failure, and that White recommended euthanasia and euthanized the dog, says the affidavit.
White told investigators that, with permission from Blake, she sent the dog’s remains to the State Veterinary Crime Lab in Laramie for a necropsy.
The necropsy report confirmed kidney failure from antifreeze poisoning, the document alleges.
Blake told investigators that Erspamer had talked with a friend about the alleged poisoning on Snapchat. Investigators obtained a search warrant for Erspamer’s Snapchat account, and Snyder reviewed those messages, the affidavit says.
Erspamer acknowledged to a person in those messages that she’d sprayed bleach on treats that she fed to the dog, the document claims, adding that she told another person the same, and corresponded “extensively” with another person about how to avoid discovery regarding actions with the dog.
A female friend gave Erspamer examples of messages to send to other people “to deflect suspicion of wrongdoing,” related Watkins from the investigation.
The affidavit says Erspamer queried Snapchat’s artificial intelligence search engine to ask, “Can an autopsy on a dog show antifreeze poisoning” and “what about bleach” and “how long would it take for bleach to kill a dog.”
When Erspamer and the third girl’s alleged involvement surfaced in chatter among other friends, Hallie chose to move out of the trailer house they shared, Shalane said.
“She’s on her own now. She’s like, 'I don’t want any more roommates,'” said the mother. “I’m like, ‘Yeah — I can’t imagine the trust issues this kid has now.’”
The Accessory Charge
Erspamer’s friend was charged in September with one count of accessory after the fact, but Melinkovich asked LaBuda on Oct. 24 to dismiss the case without prejudice, and LaBuda granted that request the same day.
A dismissal “without prejudice” means Melinkovich could bring the case against the woman again if the evidence merits it.
The accessory after the fact to a felony charge carried a steeper maximum penalty than the animal cruelty charge on which it was hinged in this case.
It would have been punishable by up to three years in prison and $3,000 in fines.
That charge should never have been filed, Melinkovich told Cowboy State Daily in a Monday email.
“Unfortunately, our office was unaware of specific constraints on that charge that prohibited her continued prosecution,” wrote Melinkovich. “Had I known this information at the time of charging, I would not have filed the accessory charge against her.”
Also Lost A Friend
Hallie wrote in a follow-up text message to Cowboy State Daily that she laments the loss of her friend, more than the loss of her dog.
“It was the realization that someone I loved so deeply could do something so cruel, and hide it from me,” she wrote. “It broke me in a way I’ve never experienced.”
Hallie said that Allie Erpsamer prayed with her outside the vet’s office, and that, “I believed with my whole heart that she cared as much as I did.”
Allie texted Hallie on April 18 to deny having hurt the dog, according to a screenshot Hallie sent Monday, but, added Hallie, “I haven’t responded to her, spoken to her or heard from her since.”
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
