Landscaper Jailed For Running Over Nine Baby Ducks With A Lawnmower
A man who deliberately ran over nine baby ducks with a lawnmower has been sentenced to a year in prison.
Jason Scott Falbo II, 24, from Royal Palm Beach in Florida, smiled and laughed as he killed the ducklings as they waddled to a nearby lake in May.
Falbo was sentenced to three years of probation on nine charges of animal cruelty, in addition to a domestic violence charge from an incident a month earlier involving his girlfriend. He will spend the first year in jail.
At the time of the incident, Falbo reportedly said: “They were in my path, so I just kept mowing.”
The ducks were killed in the back yard of a home in Wellington. Boyd Jentzsch and his wife and son had left food out for the ducks at their property, which is close to a lake.
The homeowners said Falbo was smiling and laughing after taking out several ducks, before he aimed his lawnmower at more of the animals.
Mr Jentzsch, who called animal control after the incident, said: “They should have just thrown away the keys. There is no justification for what he’s done.”
A police report said Falbo “ran directly over the ducklings and body parts were scattered all over the lawn”.
Mr Jentzch had to block Falbo’s path to stop him mowing over more ducklings.
“I thought he was going to run over my toes,” he said. “He wasn’t even cutting the grass. He went right toward (the ducklings) and veered to the left.”
The mother duck and four remaining ducklings avoided the mower and went to the lake, but two ducklings later drowned from their injuries.
Falbo’s employer, Reliable Lawn Care, said it was his first day on the job, but Mr Jentzsch insisted it was merely his first day on the mower, and that he had seen him working previously in the neighbourhood.
Falbo also pleaded guilty to charges of domestic battery – police said he grabbed his girlfriend by the neck and choked her after she refused to tell him who she was texting on her phone.
The police arrest report said: “Nine baby ducks lost their lives cruelly and viciously with extreme intent by Jason Falbo.”
(Picture: Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office)
