Tammy C. Hanson

EDNAH Compound

     Tammy Christine Hanson has lost the appeal she filed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eight Circuit following her loss at a week long civil jury trial in U. S. District Court in Harrison on May 16, 2014. 

     Tammy Hanson had originally been arrested on multiple counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty and other charges following the investigation into the EDNAH (Every Dog Needs A Home) compound that she operated in Baxter County in 2005 in what was deemed the largest animal cruelty case ever reported in the nation at that time.  Hundreds of dogs were seized, and the compound was put temporarily under the control of the Sheriff’s Office, which brought in elements of the Humane Society of the United States and the Humane Society of North Central, Arkansas to care for the animals, along with a local veterinarian and other volunteers,  while the court case was pending.

     Tammy Hanson and her husband William Hanson were ultimately convicted in Baxter County District Court of 20 counts of cruelty to animals.  They were ordered to re-appear for sentencing on February 23, 2006, but fled the jurisdiction of the court prior to sentencing.  They remained fugitives from justice until their eventual apprehension in Caledonia County, Vermont after a citizen tip was received on July 15, 2009 as to their location.  After protracted extradition proceedings, Tammy Hanson was returned to Arkansas to finally be sentenced.  She received a sentence of one year in the Baxter County Jail, along with fines, court costs, and restitution. 

     While incarcerated in the Baxter County Jail, Tammy Hanson filed suit on March 8, 2010 in the U. S. District Court – Western District of Arkansas against Baxter County, the Sheriff, and many Sheriff’s Office employees alleging unconstitutional conditions of confinement and seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in alleged damages. 

     The case finally went to jury trial in May, 2014.  After deliberating for approximately three hours, the jury found that Tammy Hanson’s civil rights had not been violated and awarded her nothing on her lawsuit.    She subsequently filed an appeal of the jury’s decision to the Eighth U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis, MO.

     In an order issued May 12, 2015, the appeals court affirmed the jury’s decision against her.

/s/ John F. Montgomery,
Baxter County Sheriff