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Dunlap animal rescue nets 60 dogs, six cats, a parrot and a goat
Approximately 60 dogs and other animals were rescued from atrocious conditions in Sequatchie County, Tennessee. The animals, many in need of urgent veterinary care, were living in absolute filth.
State officials suspended the nursing license of Geoffrey Deane Peterson in an emergency order Tuesday and listed 17 reasons why the 54-year-old’s recent actions present an “extreme and untenable danger to his patients and the public of Tennessee,” according to the order of summary suspension.
Chattanooga police continued Wednesday to search for the accused dog hoarder, who is wanted on a charge of willful neglect of his father. The warrant for his arrest came after the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on Friday raided two medical practices where Peterson — a registered advanced practice nurse — treated patients.
Peterson was arrested in December on suspicion of animal cruelty after Sequatchie County Sheriff’s deputies discovered more than 60 animals — mostly dogs — locked up in a squalid Dunlap home.
HOW THE INVESTIGATION UNFOLDED
Dec. 19, 2014: Geoffrey Deane Peterson was arrested after officers with the Sequatchie County Sheriff’s Department found 58 animals, including dogs, cats, a pigeon and a goat, inside a home in Dunlap, Tenn. Dec. 20: An officer with McKamey Animal Services found three emaciated dogs in the exam rooms at Holistic Health and Primary Care, where Peterson saw patients. Dec. 23: McKamey officers removed seven more emaciated dogs from a home in Chattanooga that had been linked to Peterson. Jan. 12, 2015: The Tennessee Department of Health sent an investigator to Peterson’s hormone replacement clinic after receiving a complaint on Peterson’s license. But Peterson locked the doors of the clinic and refused to let the investigator inside. On the same day, the investigator tried to speak to Peterson’s father, Walter Peterson, at a home in Hixson. Before the investigator left his car, Geoffrey Peterson arrived, banged on the car and demanded the investigator leave. Jan. 15: Chattanooga police officers attempted to check on Walter Peterson but Geoffrey Peterson refused to let the officers into the home. Jan. 12 – Jan. 23: Adult Protective Services attempted to check on Walter Peterson three times. Jan. 23: DEA agents raided Peterson’s two clinics and a home connected to him. A former patient said Peterson ran a pill mill. Jan. 23: Multiple agencies executed a warrant to search Walter Peterson’s home. He was found in poor condition and taken to a hospital. Peterson’s wife, 88-year-old Sheila Peterson, was arrested and charged with willful abuse or neglect of an elder. A warrant was issued for Geoffrey Peterson on the same charge. Jan. 27: The Tennessee Board of Nursing suspends Geoffrey Peterson’s nursing license in an emergency order.