Bend woman arraigned in fatal dog mauling; ‘She can’t fathom that that’s what happened.’

Published 5:15 am Wednesday, October 18, 2023

A Bend woman charged with manslaughter in a fatal dog attack appeared in court Tuesday, a day after being arrested when she showed up at Deschutes County Circuit Court.

Authorities had been searching for her unsuccessfully for a month.

Jessica Rae McCleery, 38, made her first court appearance in the case stemming from the death of Joseph Keeton, a 56-year-old man who lived in the Juniper Ridge homeless camp until authorities say he was mauled to death by three dogs in July.

McCleery, who also lived in Juniper Ridge, appeared by video from the Deschutes County jail for her arraignment. Authorities previously said her last name was Charity, but McCleery told the court Tuesday that’s not her legal name.

McCleery was indicted Sept. 15 on charges of second-degree manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office deputies were unable to arrest her until Monday, when she arrived at the courthouse as it opened.

In court Tuesday, Deschutes County Deputy District Attorney Andrew Doyle said McCleery’s dogs — each a pit-bull/bull-mastiff mix — had previously attacked other people before mauling Keeton in a “horrifyingly gruesome manner.” McCleery is accused of being reckless and negligent in causing Keeton’s death.

Doyle recommended that McCleery be kept in jail with $500,000 in security and not have possession of any animals, specifically dogs, which the judge approved. He argued that she should be kept in jail due to the severity of the allegations.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Jason Wall said authorities believed that, over the past month, McCleery had been in the Juniper Ridge area, 1,500-acres of publicly owned land on the northeast outskirts of Bend.

In a handwritten letter submitted to the court on Oct. 10, McCleery said she had not been aware of her indictment.

“My understanding is there has been a lot of … man power and effort put into trying to arrest me while I was not even aware of there being charges indicted against me, and even with my trying to get in contact with officers was unable to get anyone to contact me in return,” she wrote.

McCleery, who cooperated with investigators after Keeton’s death, urged the court to quickly move her case forward, saying she wanted “answers” and “closure” for those involved.

“(H)opefully the healing can begin for everyone effected by Joe’s untimely and unexpected passing,” she wrote.

Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels said McCleery had come to the courthouse Monday to speak to a judge. He has confidence in the case his office will make.

“We believe the evidence clearly shows that it was those dogs that attacked the victim and caused the injuries,” Gunnels said.

McCleery has a previous animal-related conviction. In 2015, she pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of second-degree animal neglect, according to court records.

Greta Willems, a Hawaii resident who previously lived in Central Oregon, is McCleery’s longtime friend and takes care of her 5-year-old son. She told The Bulletin on Tuesday that, despite McCleery’s 2015 no contest plea, she prioritized caring for her three dogs: D.J., Littlez and Precious.

“They’re her babies,” said Willems, who added: “Especially when you’re homeless and you don’t have a lot of family around, they become your family.”

McCleery has experienced homelessness off and on since she was a teenager, said Willems. She has three children, including two teens, but Willems said she didn’t know where the teens were. McCleery previously worked as a house cleaner. Willems would not explain why McCleery lived apart from her children or how she became homeless, but said she knew Keeton.

Willems never considered the three dogs dangerous and was surprised by the news of the mauling. She said she has spoken to McCleery since the mauling and added of her friend: “She can’t fathom that that’s what happened.”

A former St. Charles Bend nurse, Willems said she would sometimes provide medical help to people in the Juniper Ridge area during her free time. Willems said she would also buy McCleery dog food.

“To me, her dogs were better behaved than a lot of the dogs I encountered out there,” Willems said.

“Whenever I was with (McCleery), the dogs were tied or she was right there holding on to them, and if she was out and about with them they were leashed,” she said. “My kids have been around them. We didn’t have any issues.”

McCleery’s dogs remain at the BrightSide Animal Center in Redmond, where they are being held as potential evidence in the ongoing criminal investigation, said Wall.

McCleery’s plea hearing is scheduled for Nov. 7 at 1:30 p.m.