Love the sinner, hate the sin

The arrest Thursday of Todd Hansel for felony cruelty to animals has left a larger impact than just the death of an innocent and helpless beagle puppy. The violent end of one creature’s life has caused additional harm to a troubled man, his companion, his family, and countless other households who have, or will need, to sit with their children to try answering “why” this happened to someone’s little puppy.


“Love the sinner, hate the sin.” The phrase is probably well known to families with members who run afoul of the law. It’s a coping mechanism of sorts to say that we don’t like what you did, but you are still part of the family. The tragedy of the events that began Monday evening and culminated with the puppy’s death Wednesday morning and subsequent arrest of the alleged abuser Wednesday night, have left many questions. People now wonder what goes through the mind of someone who could, as the affidavit states, be so angry as to “black out” while disciplining a puppy for doing what a puppy does.

The Hansel’s are experiencing shock and disbelief over their son’s actions. “Todd was always passive, not aggressive,” said city council candidate Jim Hansel of his son Todd.

“Our kids grew up with a small dog that just died in August,” he said. “Sadie was a little pound poodle that was an integral member of our family.” Sadie, according to the elder Hansel, was more than 19 years old when she died.

Jim Hansel gives some additional information about his son’s interaction with animals during his recent incarceration in Jamestown, N.D. “He and the other guy in his cell had a dog named Buddy. The dog was with one of those two at all times, and even slept with Todd since he had the bottom bunk.” The experience was a positive one for Todd who wanted a dog of his own after his release.

Todd Hansel will face consequences if convicted of the crime. Currently on parole for events that took place in North Dakota, he will likely return there to finish the remainder of his original sentence if convicted on this latest charge in Sidney.

Todd’s family is already facing the consequences of his actions. The nature of the alleged crime often causes an entire family to face issues in the community. Several anonymous residents have said that it would be unfair, but sometimes the crimes charged to one family member leads to personal attacks on other family members; attacks often unwarranted. Comments left on the Sidney Sun-Telegraph online edition already reflect this negative impact.

In an effort to isolate the potential for such criticism and cynicism, city council candidate Jim Hansel is mulling over his plans to continue his bid for a seat on the governing body for the upcoming election.
In a statement to theguardiannews, Hansel said the following: “My focus right now needs to be on my family, and on helping the community work through this … especially those affected by the news of the event, or those directly impacted by and tied to this event. This will mean freeing up some of my commitments to allow more time and effort to be put into the community and family healing, which needs to happen. Sometimes we simply need to say “no” to the things or people we like–so we can say “yes” to the people and things we love.”

“The only silver lining,” Jim Hansel said, “should be that the loss of Daisy may open the eyes and strengthen the voices of those who can and should speak out to save the lives of numerous other pets who endure brutality and abuse at the hands of their owners.”