Brick Women's Plea For Return Of Dogs On Tap

BRICK, NJ — The request by two women facing animal cruelty charges in connection with an animal hoarding case for the return of some dogs is set to be heard in court on Tuesday.

Amy Lonczak and Michele Nycz are scheduled to go before Superior Court Judge Linda Baxter on their request for the return of seven dogs that were among the 180 animals seized Dec. 2 and 3 from conditions that were described as unlivable.

Lonczak, 50, and Nycz, 58, are each charged with one count of animal cruelty and one count of child endangerment in the case. They made the request for the return of the seven dogs during a Jan. 10 status hearing in the case.

It's a request that is adamantly rejected by the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office and the Ocean County Board of Health.

"It is the State’s position that neither of these two defendants should ever be able to possess a pet again," Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer has said.

The animals were found in conditions that required people dressed in hazmat suits to retrieve the animals from the home; the child endangerment charge was included because Lonczak's 16-year-old daughter was living with them in the home.

Both women were released Dec. 8 following a detention hearing before Superior Court Judge Wendel E. Daniels, who set several conditions on their release, including weekly check-ins with the court, no contact with Lonczak's daughter and no interaction with animals.

Lonczak and Nycz signed over their legal claims to the animals after the Dec. 8 hearing, which allowed the shelter to begin moving forward with adoptions.

Read more: Women Released To Await Trial In Brick Animal Hoarding Case

The two showed up at the Southern Ocean County Animal Shelter in Manahawkin on Jan. 19, trying to get the dogs in question returned to them, which prompted a request by the prosecutor's office to revoke their pretrial release.

Judge Guy P. Ryan declined to revoke their release at a hearing in late January. Read more: Women In Brick Hoarding Case To Remain Free Until Trial, Judge Rules

Tuesday's hearing before Baxter is set for 1:30 p.m.