The dog Aarin Burdine-Moody allegedly left out in the cold and was attacked by two other dogs is at the Atlantic County Animal Shelter being treated for his injuries.
An Atlantic City man already facing charges of animal cruelty to two dogs was ordered held after allegedly abandoning two more in the cold.
One of those dogs later was found dead, frozen into the snow outside Aarin Burdine-Moody’s apartment building. The other was the victim of an attack by two other dogs in a video that led to the arrest of the owner of those two dogs, Clarance Gilliard.
Gilliard, 56, also of Atlantic City, was ordered released Wednesday, after he had a family member surrendered the 13 dogs that were in his Rosemont Place home, including nine puppies.
But Burdine-Moody was ordered held, with Superior Court Judge William Miller going against the public safety assessment recommendation that he be released, citing danger to both other dogs and the public.
Burdine-Moody, 22, has no criminal convictions on his adult record, but this was his second animal cruelty case within three months.
He previously was accused of leaving two pit bulls — a male and female — in a crate in his Liberty Apartments residence for days or possibly weeks. Both were extremely emaciated, stained with urine and feces, according to the report.
This time, Burdine-Moody was seen on video taking two male dogs outside in the cold just after midnight Feb. 6, with the dogs digging into a dumpster to eat, relieving themselves and then being left as the man went back inside, according to the charges.
Other people’s trash seemed the only sustenance the dogs received, Assistant Prosecutor Alexandria Peters told the judge.
Temperatures were in the high teens to low 20s at the time, with a frigid wind chill, she added.
Defense attorney Holly Bitters said the state could have an issue proving the two dogs belonged to her client, who insists that he had not been living in his apartment, and that the people watching his home had left the dogs there.
He did not know what else to do with them, Bitters said.
Burdine-Moody also believed that the previous case was in the process of being dismissed against him, Bitters said.
Peters countered that, saying the state never moved to drop the prior case, and that the prosecution was continuing “full force.” She also noted that Burdine-Moody did not show up to court in that case last week, which BreakingAC previously reported resulted in a bench warrant.
Aarin Burdine-Moody at his detention hearing Feb. 18, 2026.Burdine-Moody was taken to court to surrender the dogs in the previous or pay for their care, which led to them being turned over.
The judge noted that Burdine-Moody already was given a chance at release when he was charged on a summons in the first case, meaning he did not go to jail.
He said that decision likely was based on “the reliance that this would not repeat itself, and it did.”
Burdine-Moody actually is charged in two separate cases from earlier this month, tied to the one dog found dead and the other the victim of the videoed attack by two dogs in Stanley Holmes Village just blocks from Liberty Apartments.
Two different humane law enforcement officers were investigating the cases Feb. 7, when they found the Facebook live video streamed by Laquay Lewis linked the two cases.
Humane Law Enforcement Officer Taylor Brooks was called to Liberty Apartments at about 10:30 a.m. Feb. 7, for the dog found dead. She watched video surveillance, and saw that Burdine-Moody had two dogs when he came outside.
Around that same time, Lewis was livestreaming the dog fight video, showing the second dog being attacked by two dogs belonging to Gilliard. He removes one of the dogs, but later is seen watching the other dog continue his attack without stepping in.
Humane Law Enforcement Officer Matt Schmidt responded to that call. Brooks then notified him of the connection.
Burdine-Moody appeared via video from the jail at his detention hearing Wednesday. He was muted, but could be seen trying to speak, raising his hand, wiping his eyes and looking as if he was trying to plead his own case.
Miller said he did not think it was a good idea for the defendant to speak on the record, but gave him time to speak with his attorney in a breakout room on the video.
When Bitters came back from that discussion, she said Burdine-Moody only had some follow-up questions but nothing to add to the record. He continued to raise his hand to speak, but was told to leave the booth.
He will remain in the Atlantic County Justice Facility while his cases are pending.
