A gray cat now named Harvey spent at least two days trapped by his paw in a bear trap in Upper Gwynedd, Pennsylvania, shot with metal pellets, enduring a thunderstorm and heat that reached 93 degrees before anyone got him help. He survived, but lost his left eye and several toes.

Police say Steven Buchecker shot Harvey and left him in the trap. They say Meredith Ziemba knew Harvey was hurt and trapped in her yard and, rather than getting him food, water, or a vet, allegedly told Buchecker to "take care of the cat" and "make sure it's dead." A witness says she visited the property, saw Harvey suffering, and repeatedly urged the people there to help him. Nobody did, until police finally found him two days later.

Both Buchecker and Ziemba are now facing felony animal cruelty charges. Buchecker also faces charges for allegedly threatening the witness who reported what happened to him. That should never happen to someone who tries to help an animal in distress.

This isn't the first time Buchecker has faced serious allegations. In 2023, felony charges accusing him of choking a woman and chasing her with a knife were dismissed only after she stopped cooperating with prosecutors, not because the allegations were disproven. That history makes it even more important that prosecutors take this case seriously now.

Harvey survived and has a new home, but what he went through shouldn't be treated lightly just because he's a cat, not a person. Both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty, and deserve a fair trial, but the evidence here deserves a real day in court.

Sign this petition to demand Montgomery County prosecutors pursue the full felony charges against both defendants in Harvey's case.