Christina Fay to be sentenced Dec. 21 in Great Dane case

OSSIPEE — The Wolfeboro woman who was convicted on 10 counts of animal cruelty on Monday, in a court case that received international press coverage, will be sentenced in circuit court on Dec. 21.

On Monday, Judge Charles Greenhalgh found Christina Fay, 59, guilty of the 10 charges.

Though the trial, overseen by Greenhalgh, began Oct. 16 and ran six days through Nov. 14, the case actually started in June, when police and Humane Society of the United States seized 75 Great Danes from Fay’s home in Wolfeboro and nine more from a Bartlett location. The Conway Area Humane Society received another nine Great Danes prior to the seizure.

The sentencing hearing will take place at Ossipee’s circuit court at 8:15 a.m. on Dec. 21. One hour has been allotted.

The charges on which she was convicted are all Class A misdemeanors, which are all punishable by a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.

The notice of hearing says the convict has 72 hours to notify the district division of the circuit court if the convict seeks to appeal to the Superior Court.

In a press release Tuesday, Fay’s defense team indicated they would like to appeal and that they were “disappointed” by the verdict. Fay is represented by Jim Cowles of Walker and Varney and Kent Barker of Winer and Bennett.

“Details of their objection will be described in subsequent pleadings and proceedings on appeal,” said the defense team.

At sentencing, Greenhalgh will also determine where many of the dogs will go. The dogs that the Conway Area Humane Society took have already been given new homes. The rest are being held by the HSUS.

As of mid-October, housing the dogs had cost the HSUS $478,000.

On Wednesday, Lindsay Hamrick, New Hampshire state director for The Humane Society of the United States, said that figure has grown, and the HSUS is getting its figures together so it can ask for restitution.

Greenhalgh also can decide to bar Fay from owning animals, said Hamrick.