A man has been sentenced to six months in jail for intentionally injuring a cat, leaving it dead, after attacking a woman in Harvard and telling her, “Maybe [the cat] would have survived… if you had been nicer to me.”
Storm R. Ince, 25, of Kewanee, was charged in February 2023 with one count of aggravated cruelty to animals, two counts of domestic battery, producing cannabis plants and attempting to manufacture or deliver cannabis.
The charges stem from an incident that the Harvard Police Department was called to around 1:30 a.m. on February 13, 2023, in the 1400 block of Northfield Court in Harvard.
A criminal complaint filed in McHenry County Circuit Court alleges Ince caused bodily harm to a female, who is a family or household member.
Ince struck the woman with a closed fist on her head, legs and arms, the complaint said. The woman was not seriously injured.
The complaint also said Ince intentionally committed an act that caused a companion animal to be harmed.
Harvard Police Chief Tyson Bauman said at the time that the animal, a cat, was severely injured. The McHenry County Animal Control responded to the scene.
Animal control officers took possession of the cat, who was “not stable and care is ongoing,” the health department previously said. The animal later died from its injuries.
In an order of protection petition, the woman involved said on the night of the attack that she left the home and put her phone on airplane mode in hopes of letting Ince calm down.
She turned off airplane mode later and found numerous calls and messages.
Ince had called her and told her, “Come inside now, since you were mean to me I’ve been f–ing up Zora,” referring to a cat, the petition said.
He also sent a video of the abuse and the woman texted him asking him not to hurt the pets or herself, the petition said.
Ince said he could not promise that and the two talked on the phone again, at which time Ince allegedly told her, “If only you would have been nicer to me, I wouldn’t have to beat her up again and maybe she would have survived. Get in here quickly, I don’t want to hurt her but you were mean to me and I have mental illnesses and can’t control it,” according to the petition.
Officers found Ince had produced 21 cannabis sativa plants inside his residence, a criminal complaint said.
Officers arrested Ince and transported him to the McHenry County Jail.
McHenry County Judge Kevin Costello ordered Ince held on a $25,000 bond and to have no contact with the victim.
Ince was released after someone posted 10% of his bond on February 15, 2023.
He was arrested again in March 2023 after being charged with two counts of violation of an order of protection and one count of violation of bail bond, court records show.
A criminal complaint said Ince made contact with the victim of the domestic battery by calling her on February 22, 2023, despite having been served with an order of protection barring him from communicating with her.
A separate criminal complaint said Ince also called the victim on February 15, 2023, in violation of his bond conditions and the order of protection.
Ince was ordered held on a $6,000 bond for the new charges and released the same day of his arrest after posting 10% of the bond.
Court records show a judge forfeited Ince’s cash bond due to him failing to appear in court on June 25, a violation of his bond conditions.
An arrest warrant was issued for him and the Henry County Sheriff’s Office arrested him in July.
McHenry County Judge Tiffany Davis allowed Ince to be released from the McHenry County Jail with pre-trial conditions.
A jury trial was scheduled for February 10 and Ince failed to appear in court, with Davis issuing an arrest warrant for him.
He was arrested on the warrant on March 14 and the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a petition for sanctions.
Prosecutors said that Ince’s failure to appear for the scheduled trial was a violation of his pre-trial release and they requested sanctions be imposed.
Davis granted the petition following a hearing on March 17 and sentenced Ince to 30 days in the McHenry County Jail after he voluntarily admitted to the petition and waived his right to a hearing.
He was again sentenced to 30 days in jail on August 27 following another sanctions petition filed against him.
Court records show Ince entered into a negotiated plea deal with the state’s attorney’s office last month.
He pleaded guilty to aggravated cruelty to animals, a Class 4 felony, and domestic battery, a Class A misdemeanor.
Ince was sentenced to 180 days in the county jail and two years of probation as part of the agreement, which was approved by McHenry County Judge Tiffany Davis. He was also ordered to obtain evaluations and follow the recommendations.