SoCal Man Pleads No Contest To Murdering Pet Parrot

LONG BEACH, CA – An 18-year-old man pleaded no contest today to killing a pet parrot late last year in Long Beach, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced. After Edward Cervantes pleaded no contest to one felony count of animal cruelty, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James D. Otto sentenced him to five years of formal probation.

Cervantes was ordered to attend 48 animal cruelty classes and complete 30 days of Caltrans service; he was also ordered to stay away from the victims for five years and pay $3,272 in restitution, the press release said. As a condition of his probation, Cervantes must either get a full-time job, be enrolled in school full-time, or have part-time work while going to school.

At the time of the crime, Cervantes had been staying at a home in the 1300 block of East Ocean Boulevard in Long Beach, according to Deputy District Attorney Dan Novey, who prosecuted the case.

On the evening of Dec. 26, 2017, Cervantes had a heated exchange with his hosts, the prosecutor said. He then assaulted and killed the hosts' yellow-headed amazon parrot, the press release said. Soon after the attack, authorities located Cervantes and took him into custody, according to the prosecutor.

The case was investigated by the Long Beach Police Department.

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