‘Private property means nothing to me’: Cat trapper defends boarding Tacoma sailboat where 60 cats were found

Camille Sutherland, a private cat trapper, boarded an abandoned sailboat off Owen Beach in Tacoma, where police eventually rescued 60 cats and kittens living in what officers described as unsafe conditions. Sutherland said she has no regrets, even after being listed as a suspect in the case.

Sutherland joined “The John Curley Show” on KIRO Newsradio to explain why she boarded the 40-foot vessel before police finished their operation.

“Private property means nothing to me,” she said. “I’ll go in and rescue a cat if it needs help.”

Tacoma police said Sutherland was warned several times to stay away from the boat, which was wrapped in crime scene tape and under the authority of a search warrant.

Sutherland rescued three cats before police forced her to leave; she’s now a suspect in the case

Sutherland said she pulled three cats from the vessel but was forced to leave when the police boat arrived as four more cats were approaching her traps.

Curley asked if her approach of acting first and dealing with consequences later has gotten her into trouble before.

“Never with the law,” Sutherland said. “Until potentially now, which I’m sure that nothing will come of this. I hope not.”

She said she has been listed as a suspect in the case but dismissed the designation, saying police should focus on the remaining cats rather than strenuous paperwork.

“I responded, ‘You all should focus on rescuing the last cats off the boat, and not this silly paperwork adding me as a suspect in the case,'” Sutherland said.

Sutherland describes conditions on the boat, her philosophy on rescue

Sutherland told Curley that all the cats had been locked inside the boat for at least three days during last week’s heat, and that every interior floor was covered in roughly two inches of wet feces.

“There wasn’t even a place where he could lay down,” Sutherland said of the boat’s owner. “I honestly am not convinced that he was living on that boat.”

She noted that hoarding cases tend to involve people who genuinely love animals but are dealing with mental illness, but Sutherland added, “I’m not giving any sympathy to this man.”

“He really should have sought help a long time ago,” Sutherland said.

An online critic called Sutherland reckless for boarding the boat, but she was unbothered by the statement.

“Don’t underestimate me,” she said. “I’m not an idiot. I have a boat, I have access to boats, and I used a boat on Monday night to take cats to land.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

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