Indio man pleads not guilty to shooting dog in Palm Desert neighborhood

An Indio man who allegedly shot and killed a dog while fleeing from sheriff’s deputies in a Palm Desert neighborhood was charged with animal cruelty and other crimes Wednesday.

John Ferdinand Singleterry, 30, is accused of brandishing a gun at around 1 a.m. May 17 in the 44000 block of Acacia Drive.

Sheriff’s deputies were initially called to the neighborhood after a resident said Singleterry approached him, saying “the cops were looking for him,” an arrest warrant declaration states.

As Singleterry was talking to the resident, he allegedly pulled a .22 caliber revolver from his waistband and cocked the hammer. He allegedly told the man “he just needed to get back to his car and he didn’t want any problems,” according to the declaration.

During a subsequent search of the neighborhood, deputies heard three gunshots, according to an incident report from the Palm Desert sheriff’s station. Singleterry was found crouching behind two trash cans in the backyard of a home on Acacia Drive, where he allegedly shot a dog.

The dog was taken to an emergency veterinarian clinic, where it later died.

Singleterry told deputies that he thought the dog was going to bite him, the declaration states.

He was charged in two separate cases Wednesday, one for the shooting and another for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

Singleterry, who’s being held on $30,000 bail, pleaded not guilty to all charges in both cases, which along with the animal cruelty count, include felony counts for possessing firearms and ammunition and misdemeanor counts for brandishing a firearm and trespassing.

He is next due in court Oct. 20 for a felony settlement conference.

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