Prosecute Royce Green for Starving 11 Dogs

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The Issue

Eleven dogs — six adults and five puppies — were found locked inside a Bane Street home in Warren Township, Ohio, malnourished and living among urine and feces. Photos shared by rescuers showed dogs so thin their ribs were visible through their skin. It took a joint effort from the Healthy Hearts and Paws Project Volunteer Humane Department, Warren Township Police, the Animal Welfare League of Trumbull County, and the Trumbull County Dog Warden to get these animals out.

Royce Green, 41, now faces 22 charges under Ohio's companion animal protection law — half of them for depriving these dogs of food and water. This isn't Green's first brush with animal cruelty: in 2014, he pleaded guilty to a dog-fighting conspiracy charge connected to a ring broken up in Akron, and served only 30 days in jail with two years of probation. That light consequence didn't stop a second case from happening.

The 11 dogs are now recovering — three with Healthy Hearts and Paws, eight with the Animal Welfare League of Trumbull County — but they shouldn't have to depend on rescuers to undo what one owner allowed to happen. The Trumbull County Prosecutor's Office has the opportunity to hold Green fully accountable this time, on every one of the 22 charges filed against him.

A light penalty here sends the same message that let this happen twice. Sign the petition to urge the Trumbull County Prosecutor's Office to pursue full prosecution on all 22 charges against Royce Green — before another animal pays the price for a second chance he didn't use.

avatar of Joy K.
Petition AdvocateJoy K.
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The Decision Makers

Mike Burnett
Trumbull County Prosecutor's Office, Chief of the Criminal Division
Responded
“I appreciate your concern regarding the prosecution of Mr. Green for crimes involving companion animals. We are always encouraged when we see that the citizens of Trumbull County are as angry as we are about crimes occurring in our communities. I was the Assistant Prosecutor who wrote the search warrant executed by Jason Cooke and Officers of the Warren City Police Department in this case. As such, I am aware of the circumstances surrounding the underlying facts of the case involving Mr. Green. I can assure you that Prosecutor Watkins and each and every Assistant Prosecutor on his staff takes offenses against our companion animals very seriously and when this case is sent to our office for review we will file the appropriate charges. Having said that, just as a procedural matter, these cases are initiated in the Municipal Court that has jurisdiction over the area where the offenses took place, in this case Warren Municipal Court. Once the charges are filed, and proper procedures are followed, the municipal court will “bind over” any charges that are deemed to be felonies. It is at that time that our office receives formal charges for review and presentation to the Trumbull County Grand Jury. I have reviewed our files, and we haven’t received anything from Warren Municipal Court to date, but I assure you when we receive charges we will ensure that they are promptly staffed to one of our assistant prosecutors and handled appropriately. Thank you for your community involvement, we appreciate your input and spreading awareness through change.org. -Mike Burnett [Note: The Change.org Civic Engagement Team reaches out to decision makers to let them know about petitions in their community and to help facilitate engagement with supporters. The above was an email response we received regarding this petition.]”
Dennis Watkins
Trumbull County Prosecuting Attorney
Trumbull County Prosecutor's Office

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Petition created on September 14, 2026