WAILUKU - A Kihei man was ordered to pay $500 in fines Thursday for entering a housemate's room and hitting the man's dog with a golf club.
Clifford Gomes, 49, had pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of simple trespassing and second-degree cruelty to animals in the Jan. 11 incident.
That evening, after the housemate had left to go across the street, Gomes went into the man's room and struck his dog on the head with the golf club, said Deputy Prosecutor Timothy Tate.
He said Gomes later admitted what he did to a police officer.
A Maui Humane Society veterinarian examined the dog, which is expected to make a full recovery, Tate said.
"This is a fair agreement," said defense attorney Joseph Rome.
He said the dog owner has since left the residence, where tenants rent rooms and have common areas. Gomes works and had the money to pay the fines Thursday, Rome said.
Second Circuit Judge Rhonda Loo imposed the sentence, following a plea agreement between the defense and the prosecution.
