Thurston man convicted of killing dog in grisly animal cruelty case. He says he’s innocent

A 28-year-old Thurston County man has been sentenced to four years in prison after a jury found him guilty of crimes stemming from the killing of a young dog named Rocky.

Zachary Dickinson attended his sentencing hearing in Thurston County Superior Court on June 21. Deputies arrested him in October 2023 on suspicion of first-degree animal cruelty and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Judge Allyson Zipp delivered the sentence about two months after a jury convicted Dickinson of the crimes and found he killed Rocky with an “egregious lack of remorse,” according to court records. Dickinson has reportedly maintained his innocence throughout the court process and intends to appeal the verdict.

“As prosecutors, it is our duty to seek justice, especially in cases involving the cruel and senseless infliction of suffering on any living being,” Thurston County Prosecutor Jon Tunheim said in a news release. “This conviction sends a clear message that conduct involving such cruelty toward animals will not be tolerated in our community.”

Rocky, a young Rottweiler and Golden Retriever mix, died after being stabbed three times, shot in the back of the neck and dumped into the Nisqually River on Oct. 16. The incident began at a home on Conine Avenue Southeast in the Nisqually Valley. Deputies recovered the dead dog from the riverbank and arrested Dickinson two days later, The Olympian previously reported.

“Zachary Dickinson’s crime shocks the conscience,” Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys Rudy Breteler and Randy Trick said in a sentencing memorandum.

“This was a deliberate, premeditated, prolonged, and gory attack committed with a degree of brutality and disregard for life that raises considerable concerns about the defendant’s future capacity and propensity for violence.”

What happened on Oct. 16?

Two teenagers testified during the trial that Dickinson called out for Rocky and another dog to eat. Shortly afterwards, Rocky appeared at the kitchen glass door covered in blood and desperately pawing at the door, according to court records.

Both teens told the jury that Dickinson appeared behind Rocky holding a knife. They also testified that Dickinson made statements that implied he wanted to kill Rocky because he believed the dog had been chewing on a deer carcass hanging in the back yard.

The teens had been eating at the kitchen table when the incident occurred and fled the house in distress, according to court records.

One of the teens said they heard Dickinson say he was going to retrieve a gun and the other teen said they heard a gunshot as they made their escape. One of them called 911 to report the incident.

A deputy who responded to the scene testified that they encountered a “hostile environment” at the home, and only the teens welcomed their presence, according to court records.

Deputies reportedly found Rocky after following a trail of blood to the riverbank. Due to hazardous terrain, court records say a Sheriff’s Office dive team used specialized rescue equipment to recover the dead dog.

A veterinarian later examined Rocky’s body. The necropsy revealed Rocky had been stabbed and shot but the veterinarian determined the wounds did not immediately kill the dog, according to court records.

“He was then dumped down a riverbank into the river and attempted to crawl out, indicating he was alive when he went into the water and for some time afterwards, suffering immensely,” the veterinarian reportedly said.

What arguments were made prior to sentencing?

Prosecutors alleged Dickinson unlawfully possessed a firearm because he must have used one to shoot Rocky. Dickinson cannot legally possess a firearm due to a previous felony conviction. Court records indicate Dickinson was convicted of third-degree rape of a child in 2019 and sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison.

Prosecutors also said Dickinson displayed an “egregious lack of remorse” with respect to the animal cruelty charge. The jury agreed, but the memorandum says Dickinson has continued to describe himself as “innocent and wrongfully convicted.”

“Post-conviction, Mr. Dickinson has also avowed an unwillingness to comply with any alternatives to incarceration that the Court might consider imposing,” prosecutors said.

As evidence of this, prosecutors pointed to an April 23 phone call in which he said to a friend, “If you think I’m doing DOC after this [expletive], you’re high as [expletive]. I’m not doing it.”

“The State proposes that Mr. Dickinson should be taken at his word on this,” prosecutors said. “The only appropriate sentence is one that will see Mr. Dickinson physically confined away from society for such a length of time that there may be a genuine hope he may change his perspective before he is released.”

In a separate sentencing memorandum, Mathew Kellegrew, Dickinson’s defense attorney, said that Dickinson should not be punished for exercising his right to a trial and maintaining his innocence.

“Again, while Mr. Dickinson maintains his innocence and disagrees with the verdict of the jury, he respects the jury trial process and intends to appeal,” Kellegrew said.

Two alibi witnesses testified that Dickinson could not have been responsible because they “had personal knowledge of his whereabouts at the time of the incident,” Kellegrew said.

Furthermore, Kellegrew said cell phone records corroborated the version of events presented by the alibi witnesses.

Dickinson has followed release terms and court ordered requirements in the past, Kellegrew said. Dickinson also assisted law enforcement in an investigation into a day care center where he said he suffered sexual abuse at a young age, he said.

Why 48 months in prison?

Deputy prosecuting attorneys Breteler and Trick asked Judge Zipp to sentence Dickinson to 70 months in prison while Kellegrew requested a total of 44 months. Zipp ultimately decided on a sentence of 48 months.

Notably, the Washington state legislature classified first-degree animal cruelty as a level three offense during the 2024 legislative session. That change means the crime now carries a maximum standard range sentence of five years in prison, depending on the defendant’s number of previous felony convictions, according to the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office news release.

Previously, the crime was an unranked offense in most cases. That meant the standard range for the crime was a year or less, regardless of the defendant’s criminal history, the release says.

The change in state law did not apply to Dickinson’s case, however the court was allowed to impose the 48-month sentence because the jury found the crime was committed with an aggravating circumstance, in this case an “egregious lack of remorse.”