A year and a half after he stole a cat from the Stevens Swann Humane Society and killed it, Sebastian Di Cesare was sentenced for the crime. Di Cesare pleaded guilty in February to aggravated cruelty to animals. It was in April of 2005 that surveillance cameras at the humane society captured Di Cesare stuffing Stephanie, a calico cat, into his coat. Staff there were horrified and, later, grief-stricken when Stephanie was found dead.

Judge Michael L. Dwyer granted several adjournments of Di Cesare's sentencing at Di Cesare's attorney's request because lawyer Mark Wolber claimed Di Cesare was getting treatment for mental illness and drug addiction and making progress. But when Di Cesare recently tried to deny purchasing a cat (which was later found ok), Judge Dwyer moved his sentencing from December, to today.

Several animal rights advocates were in court today to see Di Cesare sentenced. Kathy Contino-Turner of the Stevens-Swann Humane Society spoke about the trauma workers there felt at being unable to protect Stephanie from Di Cesare. Di Cesare himself apologized to everyone he hurt and assured them he'd pay the price long after he finished his jail sentence, pointing out that he'd have a felony on his record and be unable to utilize his degree in criminal justice.

The judge sentenced Di Cesare to five years probation, with the first six months to be spent at the Oneida County Jail. Di Cesare is prohibited from having any contact with animals during that probationary period. The judge is allowing him to continue his mental health counseling while he's incarcerated.