Cat herding?

SANTA ROSA, Calif. - A Sonoma County judge refused to release cat hoarder Marilyn Barletta on her own recognizance Wednesday.

Sonoma County District Attorney spokeswoman Donna Edwards said Barletta was "up for bail hearing but was not released."

A hearing to set trial date for the animal cruelty charges Barletta is facing was set for Jan. 28, Edwards said.

On Jan. 9 a court-appointed psychiatrist judged 64-year-old Barletta to be mentally competent enough to face animal abuse charges. Barletta is currently being held in the Sonoma County Jail.

Last year, another mental health expert said Barletta wasn't mentally competent for trial.

Calls to Barletta's lawyer, Gregor Guy-Smith, were not returned.

The original animal cruelty charges against Barletta stem from the May 2001 discovery of 196 cats in a two-story Petaluma house she bought solely for the feral felines. Barletta, a retired real estate agent, drove daily from her San Francisco home to feed the animals, but the home soon fell into disrepair.

Barletta denied mistreating the animals. She said she had rescued them and was trying to find them homes.

Barletta posted $50,000 bail for the 2001 arrest and was later found to be keeping a large number of cats in an office in Sausalito.

The article doesn't say what condition the cats were in.... I would assume the place had to be pretty filthy. So sad, because she obviously started out with the best of intentions! :(