The Pontiac woman charged with running an illegal animal shelter has been found guilty.

Karmen Alletia Schooly, 48, was charged with failure to provide adequate care to 25 or more animals and convicted of the third-degree felony on Wednesday in Oakland County Circuit Court. She faces up to seven years in prison, fines up to $10,000 and up to 500 hours of community service. The court revoked her bond. She remains in Oakland County Jail until her sentencing date, Jan. 21 2026.

“This verdict sends a clear message that animal neglect will not be tolerated in Oakland County,” said Bob Gatt, manager of Oakland County Animal Shelter and Pet Adoption Center. “Our animal control officers and shelter staff acted swiftly and compassionately to protect these animals and ensure they received the care they desperately needed.”

Oakland County Prosecutor Karen D. McDonald said the jury verdict “holds Karmen Schooly accountable and hopefully prevents her from abusing more animals in the future,”

“Animal abuse is a crime we take seriously. I’m grateful to the Oakland County Animal Control for rescuing these animals from deplorable conditions and bringing us this case, McDonald said.

Schooly founded TriCounty Dog Rescue in 2018 and operated it out of a house at 994 Argyle St. in Pontiac. The Internal Revenue Service granted the TriCounty nonprofit status in 2018. But Michigan’s department of agriculture and rural development officials told The Oakland Press Schooly did not have a state-required license to operate an animal rescue or a permit to import animals from other states.

She was charged in Oakland County after county officials removed 29 dogs and eight cats from the Argyle Street home in September 2024. One of the cats was ill and had to be euthanized.

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She was also charged with operating an unregistered animal shelter, a misdemeanor with penalties of up to 90 days in jail and/or a fine up to $500.

It’s the third case in which Schooly was accused of improper care for multiple animals.

In 2024, Macomb County charged Schooly with one felony count of animal cruelty/abandonment, one felony count of unauthorized practice as a veterinarian/ health professional and a misdemeanor charge of operating an unlicensed animal shelter.

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She had placed seven puppies with Alicia Coleman of Lenox Township in 2023. When two puppies fell ill with the highly contagious canine parvovirus. Coleman paid for their veterinary care and they survived. Schooly refused to take any of the dogs back or reimburse Coleman, who found a home for one of the puppies and brought the rest to Macomb County Animal Control, which documented more than $70,000 in care for the dogs over the next year.

In January 2024, Judge William Hackel III ordered Schooly to reimburse MCAC $70,255 for the dogs’ care. When she couldn’t pay, she forfeited the dogs to the county. Each dog was successfully placed in an adoptive home.

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Schooly rejected a Macomb plea deal that would have dropped the unauthorized practice charge if she agreed not to own any animals unless they were licensed by Oakland County and she agreed to random inspection by Oakland County Animal Control. Macomb County Circuit Court Judge Julie Gatti also provided a monthly payment plan for the $70,255 during Schooly’s probation. Schooly rejected the deal but the case was later dismissed when the court found that she should have been charged in Oakland County.

In April 2021, Schooly was charged with animal neglect in Wayne County after she accepted 10 puppies from Kentucky and gave them to a Redford Township couple who had agreed to foster the animals. After a neighbor complained, police took the pups to the Michigan Humane Society. Redford Township police issued 10 citations against Schooly for violating Redford Township’s animal cruelty ordinance. The case ended up before the Michigan Court of Appeals. That court’s opinion, issued in July, stated the township “acted beyond its lawful authority” by charging Schooly because the puppies were picked up in Pontiac. The judges said allegations that the puppies had fleas and were dehydrated were not supported by Michigan Humane Society records.

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Oakland County animal control officers visited the Argyle Street house seven times between 2020 and 2022, including after a dog escaped a foster home and birthed a litter of puppies and a dog in foster care was accused of biting a visitor.

Pontiac code enforcement officials checked the Argyle Street house seven times between 2020 and 2023 after neighbors repeatedly complained about too many animals being kept there. The city issued two code violation tickets to Schooly and two to the home’s co-owner, Gary Schuster, including one for operating an unlicensed kennel.

On Sept. 27, 2024, Oakland County animal control officers removed 37 animals from the Argyle Street house and documented abusive and neglectful conditions, Gatt said at the time.

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