A MAN laughed after throwing his cat out of a third-floor window in a fit of rage after it urinated on him.
Sean Wilkinson, 20, opened the window of his top-floor flat in Immingham and flung the one-year-old cat nearly 24ft to the ground below.
A neighbour saw him walk out of the block of flats laughing and later pick up the pet, called Luna and suggest the neighbour let his dog out to have a go at it.
Wilkinson, formerly of Aylesby House, Immingham, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal on October 22 last year.
At Grimsby Magistrates' Court, the accused, who turns 21 tomorrow, was banned from keeping cats for ten years and ordered to do 300 hours of unpaid work. The RSPCA had requested magistrates ban him from keeping any pets.
But the court heard Wilkinson's mum, who is a veterinary nurse, keeps a dog and a cat at home, where her son now lives.
She wept in the back of the court as magistrates imposed the ban on keeping cats which means she will have to find a new home for her kitten.
Wilkinson was also ordered to pay vets' fees and costs totalling around £2,500, which he will pay off at £20 per week.
In court, prosecutor, Rachel Taylor, told how witness, Jack Gardener, saw an object being thrown from the top-floor flat.
He later saw Wilkinson emerge from the block of flats laughing and pick up the cat by the scruff of its neck.
The pet owner dumped the cat at Mr Gardener's feet and said: "Let your dog out."
The witness raised the alarm and RSPCA inspectors took Luna to a vets' practice where it was diagnosed with five broken ribs and double fracture of the pelvis as a result of the 7.3-metre plunge.
Luna survived the ordeal and has since been rehomed, magistrates were told.
When Wilkinson was interviewed by RSPCA officials he said the cat had urinated on him as he sat watching TV.
The prosecutor said the owner picked up the cat, slapped it on its backside, opened the window and threw it out.
She said it had been an "impulsive and unpredictable act".
She presented photographs of Luna and the location of the incident to magistrates.
The prosecutor urged magistrates to impose a ban on keeping animals because of the risk of a repeat of the incident.
For Wilkinson, Steve Freestone said his client was "thoroughly ashamed" and realised "how unpleasant a thing it was to do".
He said: "He had snapped on the day in question."
The defence solicitor said his client had suffered difficulties having lost his job recently.
He explained the mother, who he said worked as a veterinary nurse, faced the problem of wanting to keep her son at the family home in Silver Street, Barrow but also care for the family's pet cat and 11-year-old dog.
Mr Freestone highlighted the impact a ban on animals would have on the family.
Magistrates ordered Wilkinson to undergo 12 months supervision by the probation service.
After the hearing, RSPCA Inspector Stuart Wainwright said: "We are very pleased with the court judgement. It reflects how seriously the magistrates took the matter and the severity of the case. The ban is a good deterrent and shows that causing suffering at this level will not be tolerated.
"It is completely unacceptable for someone to throw a defenceless cat from a window."
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![Man 'snapped' and threw cat from window of third floor flat in Immingham Man 'snapped' and threw cat from window of third floor flat in Immingham]()