Purr-fect ending: Owner of cat accused of trespassing, taunting other pets wins $125,000 settlement
BELLEVUE, Wash – A Washington state woman and her cat are $125,000 richer after taking on the City of Bellevue and King County.
For three years, Anna Danieli and her faithful feline, Miska, have fought accusations that the cat trespassed and taunted other pets, racking up more than 30 violations and $30,000 in fines, KIRO-TV reported.
According to NPR, there was even an attempt to have the cat put down or evicted from King County.
Danieli’s two-man legal team sought reimbursement for costs incurred and brought civil rights claims against King County, the City of Bellevue and other unspecified government entities and officials, KIRO reported.
In addition to the $125,000 settlement, the lawsuit spurred a court order that resulted in changes to Bellevue’s city code and the way that civil offenses involving animals are heard, the TV station reported
According to KIRO, Regional Animal Services of King County, acting on behalf of the City of Bellevue, first issued violations in 2014 targeting Miska’s alleged behavior.
“Miska is the most prosecuted cat in King County and in the City of Bellevue,” Jon Zimmerman, one of Danieli’s attorneys, said in 2020.
In response, Danieli filed a lawsuit alleging governmental overreach, arguing her neighbor is an animal control manager involved in many of the complaints, KIRO reported.
