MOUNT PLEASANT (AP) -- A Mount Pleasant man, who police say drunkenly kicked a puppy to death in northern Lower Michigan, has been sentenced to up to five years in prison.
Maurice Francis was sentenced Monday in Suttons Bay to one-and-a-half to five years in the case. He plead guilty last month to killing or torturing an animal and felony drunken driving.
The 21-year-old blames his behavior on alcohol abuse. He apologized to a packed courtroom and asked for forgiveness before being sentenced.
Authorities say Francis smashed out the windows of a woman's vehicle in the Leelanau County community of Northport in March and began kicking Blu, a 12-week-old dog. Blu later died from the injuries.
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