The Chandler Police Department said officers arrested McLaughlin, also known as Sydney Taylor McKinley, without incident. The second arrest came nearly two months after police initially arrested McLaughlin and charged her with 110 counts of animal abuse and cruelty and one count of vulnerable adult abuse.
Police found 60 dogs in her home on Sept. 22 — 55 were alive and five dead animals were in a freezer. Five were later euthanized. Some of the dogs were covered in their own excrement, and others had visible festering wounds, according to police reports.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office punted the original case back to Chandler police. County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said in October that her office only prosecutes misdemeanor cases from unincorporated areas of the county. On Tuesday, police filed 95 counts of animal cruelty against McLaughlin — 77 misdemeanor charges were submitted to city prosecutors, while nine felonies and nine misdemeanor charges were submitted to Mitchell’s office for review.
The case ignited a firestorm of controversy and animal rights advocates called for the city of Chandler to revise its animal abuse ordinances. On Nov. 9, the Chandler City Council gave preliminary approval to beefed-up animal cruelty laws. A final vote is scheduled for Dec. 4. If approved, the new ordinance would take effect in January.
Chandler prosecutor Collin Yu speaks with April McLaughlin during an Oct. 11 hearing.
Serena O'Sullivan
Chandler votes to revise animal abuse ordinance
McLaughlin claimed to be operating a rescue for special needs dogs out of her Chandler home. The horrific nature of the case fast-tracked an effort ongoing since 2022 to update portions of Chandler’s municipal code that addresses animals.According to Chandler municipal codes, the ordinances pertaining to animal cruelty have not changed since 1999. Other provisions relating specifically to dogs have not been updated since they were introduced in 1978, according to MuniCode.
The proposed changes expand the city’s ordinance on animal cruelty from a single paragraph to a 12-page section that defines and penalizes hoarding, cruel neglect and cruel abuse. The revisions also give police the authority to take animals from owners without a warrant and expands the ability of judges to permanently take animals from owners.
Councilmember OD Harris, who sits on the Community Safety Subcommittee that revised the ordinance, called the expanded measure “a great step forward.”
"Animal cruelty is a painful thing to know, I have two beautiful Yorkies, and to know that people wouldn't take care of their precious animals, I have no clue why, but I'm kind of glad we're addressing it,” Harris said at the Nov. 9 meeting. “I think this is a great step forward to make sure we're strengthening our laws as we're moving forward.”
But some animal rights advocates argued that the ordinance still lacks important updates, such as one about the presence of foul odors associated with feces and urine being enough to warrant an animal welfare check.
“In the show ‘Cops,’ when police pull somebody over, they say, ‘Sir, have you been drinking? I think I smell alcohol,’” Terri Hoffman, founder of Animal Rights Champions of Arizona, told the council on Nov. 9. “The sense of smell has long been used by law enforcement as a probable cause for search.”
Hoffman’s suggestion comes on the heels of a Sept. 27 lawsuit against the Arizona Humane Society. The complaint was lodged by three organizations — Arizona rescues Handover Rover and Be Like Josh Foundation and Texas-based Yaqui Animal Rescue — and was an attempt to regain legal rights over dogs in McLaughlin’s custody.
The lawsuit cited the presence of foul odors around the house as an indication of negligence.
"The property was in a disgusting, foul condition. When walking up to the front door, it smelled like feces and dead animals. It was clear that McLaughlin's home was not fit for caring for the dogs,” the lawsuit stated.
The expanded ordinance also defines hoarding as keeping animals in overcrowded and unsanitary living conditions, but doesn’t attach a numeric value to what is considered hoarding. The current ordinance does not prohibit hoarding.
“It’s a step in the right direction,” Hoffman told Phoenix New Times.
But she said she isn't sure if this new ordinance could prevent Chandler from seeing a future case like McLaughlin's.
"I truly don't know if the police department and the Arizona Humane Society have learned their lesson from that case," Hoffman said.
The Arizona Humane Society has received more than 1,300 calls for pets in heat distress in 2023.
Arizona Humane Society
Updated environmental exposure laws
The revised ordinance also addresses the additional risks to pets from Arizona’s hellish, record-breaking heat.“This fiscal year alone, the Arizona Humane Society has received more than 1,300 calls for pets in heat distress," Arizona Humane Society spokesperson Kelsey Dickerson told New Times in August.
The proposed update to the municipal code would more broadly define animal cruelty to cover specific situations, such as when owners fail to provide adequate water and shade for animals who are kept outside. If the council passes the ordinance, Chandler dog owners will no longer be able to leave animals outside when temperatures exceed 100 degrees.
"Leaving an animal out in the sun in the summertime in Arizona can result in animal cruelty charges because we have excessive heat in the summer,” City Attorney Kelly Schwab said during the Nov. 9 meeting.
