Woman in Lady Gaga Dog-Walker Case Sentenced

UPDATE Dec 24, 2022 12:00 PM CST

Another sentencing in last year's shooting of Lady Gaga's dog walker: Jennifer McBride, 52, received two years of probation after pleading no contest to one count of receiving stolen property, reports the Los Angeles Times. McBride brought the two dogs to police days after the robbery and shooting, claiming to have come across them tied to a pole and asking about the reward. Investigators later discovered she was in a relationship with the father of one of the men accused in the attack.

Dec 5, 2022 5:16 PM CST

The man who shot Lady Gaga's dog walker and stole her French bulldogs last year took a plea deal and was sentenced to 21 years in prison on Monday, officials said. The Lady Gaga connection was a coincidence, authorities have said. The motive was the value of the French bulldogs, a breed that can run into the thousands of dollars, and detectives do not believe the thieves knew the dogs belonged to the musician. The AP reports that James Howard Jackson, one of three men who participated in the violent robbery and were aided by two accomplices, pleaded no contest to one count of attempted murder, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Jackson and others drove around Hollywood, the city of West Hollywood and the San Fernando Valley on Feb. 24, 2021, "looking for French bulldogs," prosecutors said previously. They found Lady Gaga's dog walker, Ryan Fischer, with the pop star's three pets. Jackson shot Fischer during the robbery, during which two of the dogs were taken. A nearby doorbell camera recorded the dog walker screaming "Oh, my God! I've been shot!" and "Help me!" Fischer later called the violence a "very close call with death" in social media posts.

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The dogs were returned several days later by a woman who was also charged in the crime. Jackson also admitted the allegation of inflicting great bodily injury and to a prior strike, the DA's office said Monday. "The plea agreement holds Mr. Jackson accountable for perpetrating a coldhearted violent act and provides justice for our victim," the office said in a statement. (More Lady Gaga stories.)