Linda Marie Deworboies: Mum jailed for ‘callous’, prolonged attack on pet dog Buster who had to be euthanised

A pet dog had its leg amputated and was eventually euthanised after a mother slammed it into a brick wall in front of her child. Linda Marie Deworboies carried out the prolonged two-minute attack on defenceless Jack Russell Terrier cross Buster on a street in Leonora on New Year’s Day 2022. CCTV footage shows the 47-year-old walking with her child and swinging Buster — who weighed less than 5kg — by his front legs into a brick wall multiple times. She then punches, kicks and stomps on Buster, leaving him with serious injuries to his leg. Buster was then left in pain for 30 days with no treatment until he was taken in by an RSPCA inspector. Unfortunately, despite having his leg amputated, Buster could not be saved. Appearing in Kalgoorlie Magistrates Court, Deworboies was found to have little remorse for her actions. Magistrate Janie Gibbs said this was supported by the fact that Deworboies had breached bail conditions prohibiting her from being alone with animals and by not turning up to court. The court was told that a ranger attended Deworboies’ home while she was on bail to take an adult dog and two puppies out of her care and was seen picking up a pup by its legs and throwing it into a car. On a separate occasion, she was seen by a police officer throwing a rock at another dog. Ms Gibbs highlighted the fact that Deworboies initially denied the crime against Buster, insisting that she was not in Leonora when the incident happened. She put a limp that Buster had down to him being hit by a car three years earlier. Ms Gibbs said graphic CCTV footage shown to the court of Deworboies’ attack on Buster showed its “violent, callous” nature. “They say a picture can paint a thousand words. To say this footage is confronting, is an understatement,” she said. “It is violent, it is callous. It is significantly aggravated by the fact a child — your child — was present and watched what you did to Buster. “The fact you were willing to be so incredibly violent to a small, defenceless animal in broad daylight with the possibility of being witnessed by multiple people ... (shows the risk) you pose to animals moving forward.” Ms Gibbs said Deworboies’ explanation that she was was “stressed out” because people wanted to fight her and took out her anger on Buster did not justify her violent actions. RSPCA WA inspector manager Kylie Green said the CCTV vision was some of the most confronting she had seen in her career. “This was a cruel, deliberate, prolonged attack on a small dog,” she said. “Buster would have been suffering physical pain and emotional trauma through the whole ordeal. “Quite frankly, a betrayal of trust that brutal can only be described as disgusting and the fact the offender committed this attack in front of a child is incomprehensible.” Deworboies was jailed for 15 months, with the sentence backdated to March 25. She will be eligible for parole in three months. She was also banned for life from being in charge of domestic animals. “RSPCA WA is pleased the immediate prison sentence reflects the serious nature of the offending,” Mr Green said.