Bend man admits beating, dragging his dog on NE Third Street, faces likely 15-day jail term, agrees to give up ‘Freya’
Barney Lerten
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — A Bend man arrested on charges he beat and dragged his dog down a busy northeast Bend street entered a negotiated guilty plea Monday and faces a likely 15-day jail term. He also will be sentenced on two probation violations and agreed to give up the dog, a brown Labrador named Freya.
Sentencing is set for Wednesday morning for Kyle Jensen Strong, 36, who police said was seen by witnesses on Saturday evening, August 9th “repeatedly hitting, grabbing and dragging the dog” on NE Third Street near Olney Avenue.
Officers found Strong walking his bike along Third Street with the dog on a leash. He denied hitting the dog, but witnesses approached police and provided several videos and witness statements to confirm the actions, Bend Police Communications Manager Sheila Miller said.
Strong appeared by video Monday from the Deschutes County Jail, where he’s been held without bail for violating probation.
Strong signed a petition Friday, pleading guilty to one of the three counts of second-degree animal neglect, a Class B misdemeanor. Strong said in the petition that he “did unlawfully and recklessly cause physical injury to an animal, to-wit: a canine known as Freya.”
Freya, dog allegedly beaten by Bend man, is in the care of the Humane Society of Central Oregon
As a result, prosecutors agreed to recommend that the judge impose a 15-day jail sentence, concurrent with any sanctions for violating probation in two 2023 cases.
Circuit Judge Beth Bagley also canceled a hearing set for Tuesday on prosecutors’ petition to require that Strong forfeit the dog, after court-appointed defense attorney Dylan Potter pointed out that his client already agreed to do so, as part of the guilty plea.
Court records show Strong pleaded guilty in Deschutes County in 2024 to DUII, hit-and-run (property damage) and resisting arrest. Six other charges were dismissed, including second-degree burglary, third-degree theft, criminal mischief and criminal trespass. His three-year probation in that case continues until early 2027, and his driver’s license was suspended for life.
Strong also pleaded not guilty in June and has a jury trial set for September in Grant County on a felony DUII charge, along with misdemeanor counts of reckless driving, hit-and-run (property damage) and driving with a suspended or revoked license.
He also pleaded not guilty a year ago in Multnomah County to three misdemeanor charges of first- and second-degree criminal trespass and disorderly conduct. That case may go to trial next month.