Olympia, WA -- On June 21^st, Zachary Dickinson was sentenced to 48 months in prison for the offenses of Animal Cruelty in the First Degree and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm in the First Degree stemming from the October 2023 killing of a young dog named Rocky. The sentencing hearing followed a jury trial in April 2024, where a jury found him guilty of the charges, as well as finding an aggravating circumstance that he committed the crime with an egregious lack of remorse. 

The dog suffered three wounds from a knife, a forensic veterinarian told the jury. The dog was also shot in the back of the neck and ultimately died of shock from blood loss after suffering greatly, the veterinarian testified.

On October 16, 2023 around 6 p.m., the dog’s teenage owners were eating at the kitchen table of a home where multiple families were living when they heard Mr. Dickinson call out for Rocky and his littermate to eat. Shortly after, the owners heard their dog crying out in pain and saw Rocky appear at the kitchen glass door at the top of the stairs covered in blood. 

The teenagers testified that Zachary Dickinson appeared behind Rocky holding a knife. They told the jury that Mr. Dickinson said he was upset because he believed the dogs had been tampering with a deer carcass that he had hanging in the yard. One of the teenagers told the jury he heard Mr. Dickinson say he was getting a gun. Shortly after, the teenagers told the jury that they heard a gunshot as they were running out of the house. The female teenager called her mother, then called 911 to report the incident. 

Deputies from the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office responded and saw a trail of blood from the back of the house into the woods. Ultimately, the dog’s body was found on a rock down an embankment of the Nisqually River, which runs next to the house. Deputies testified the dog was dead when it was found. The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office Dive Team used specialized equipment to retrieve Rocky’s body from the river and then transported his body to Animal Services for a necropsy. The expert veterinarian testified that Rocky was alive when he was thrown into the river and managed to swim out of the river before succumbing to its wounds.

Prosecutors charged the Defendant with unlawful possession of a firearm due to the gunshot wound, arguing that because Rocky had suffered a gunshot wound, Mr. Dickinson has possessed a firearm, even if briefly. Mr. Dickinson could not lawfully possess a firearm due to a previous felony conviction.

“As prosecutors, it is our duty to seek justice, especially in cases involving the cruel and senseless infliction of suffering on any living being,” said Thurston County Prosecutor Jon Tunheim. “This conviction sends a clear message that conduct involving such cruelty toward animals will not be tolerated in our community.”

In addition to the teamwork of Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys Rudy Breteler and Randy Trick, the prosecutor’s office relied heavily on the work of victim advocate Shayleah Turner. The specialized work of a victim advocate is especially important to give a voice to minors who have been affected by a criminal act and to help minimize the possible trauma of participating in a trial.

At the sentencing hearing on June 21^st, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Randy Trick said, “Zachary Dickinson’s crime shocks the conscience. This was a deliberate, premeditated, prolonged, and gory attack committed with a degree of brutality and disregard for life that raises considerable concerns about the defendant’s future capacity and propensity for violence.” 

During the 2024 legislative session, the Washington State Legislature classified Animal Cruelty in the First Degree as a Level III offense. Previously, the crime had been an unranked offense in most circumstances, meaning the standard sentence regardless of a defendant’s criminal history had to be a year in jail or less. The Legislature’s change means that the offense, regardless of how the crime is committed, now carries a maximum standard range sentence of five years in prison, depending on a defendant’s number of previous felony convictions. Although the change in the law did not have an effect on Mr. Dickinson’s case, the court was permitted to impose the 48-month sentence because the jury determined the crime was committed with the aggravating circumstance of Mr. Dickinson having an egregious lack of remorse.