Southern California man charged with beating duckling to de…
Assault Irvine California in Irvine, California: Randall Lee Bertsch, 71, of Irvine, was charged with multiple felony animal cruelty counts after allegedly beating a duckling to death with a blue recycling bin and seriously injuring another duckling on May 13 at a community pool near the intersection of Morena and Segura in Irvine. Prosecutors say he grabbed several ducklings from the pool, placed them in a box, and struck the box repeatedly with the bin before throwing the ducklings in the trash and hurling the bin at the mother duck and remaining ducklings. One duckling was killed, a second suffered severe head injuries and was taken to a veterinary clinic, and the mother duck and eight other ducklings escaped unharmed. The attack was captured on video and reported by witnesses, leading Irvine police to identify Bertsch as the suspect.