Lee Erwin Reporting
lerwin@clarksvillenow.com
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – The case of an estranged couple charged with animal cruelty in Montgomery County is going to the grand jury. The pair, Eric and Nicole Hulbig face four counts of aggravated animal cruelty after authorities found four dead and decomposing dogs in June at a home they were renting on 3300 N. Henderson Way.
In a hearing Thursday, August 28 in the courtroom of Judge Ray Grimes, defense attorneys for both Nicole and Eric Hulbig argued that there was not enough evidence to connect their clients to the death of the dogs. Judge Grimes seemed reluctant to send the case to the grand jury because of the lack of evidence.
There was also a concern by Grimes when it was found there was no search warrant when officers with Montgomery County Animal Control entered the home. Employees of Bill Mace Homes, the company renting the house to the Hulbigs had access and let Animal Control investigators into the home.
After the hearing, Nicole Hulbig’s attorney Cleveland Turner said this about the case. “You’ve got to show the jury beyond any reasonable doubt a cause of death and you’ve got to connect that cause to my client. If you can’t do that, you don’t have a case,” said Turner.
As it was at an arraignment for the Hulbigs on June 20, a group of animal rights supporters were gathered outside the Montgomery County Courthouse Thursday to protest the alleged actions of the two and show support for the animals that died or were mistreated. A small group was also in the courtroom.
Shortly after the incident in Montgomery County, Sumner County authorities discovered 39 living dogs and around 37 bags of decomposed animal remains in a barn on the property of Nicole Hulbig’s mother. Hulbig said she was running a rescue/service dog training program known as Raja Renata Ranch on the property. Charges in that case are separate from those in Montgomery County.