Man with history of sexually abusing animals requests 'chemical castration' instead of prison time

His lawyer argues his actions were driven by sexual desire rather than the wish to hurt animals

Mr Bessiagano has animal abuse charges which stretch back as far as the early 1990s according to court records

A man who has a history of sexually abusing animals has asked for “chemical castration” to be a condition of his release.

Michael Bessigano, who is from Hobart in Indiana, has been in Lake County Jail since he was arrested in January for allegedly violating his probation by knowingly receiving “obscene matters from an interactive computer service”.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Mr Bessigano has asked a federal court to look at the time he has already spent imprisoned and release him on the condition that he takes a drug that would reduce his testosterone levels.

His lawyer Jennifer Soble argued Mr Bessigano’s actions were driven by sexual desire rather than the wish to hurt animals.

"To the extent that Mr Bessigano has accidentally injured or killed animals during the course of his sexual exploits, that harm is no greater than that imposed by meat-eaters and leather-wearers nationwide," his attorney wrote in a court filing.

Mr Bessiagano has animal abuse charges which stretch back as far as the early 1990s according to court records.

"Mr Bessigano's history is unique; his entire history within both the federal and state systems is entirely animated by his unusual sexual preferences," Ms Soble wrote. "Those preferences are almost certainly the result of Mr Bessigano's remarkably traumatic childhood; unable to receive or seek affection from his parents, he sought that affection from animals."

She argued that he posed no threat to the human members of his community and prison did not have the resources to help people such as himself with treatment.

An associate professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine said the hormone treatment could be successful.

Mr Bessigano spent more than four years in prison for the 2002 animal cruelty conviction for engaging in sex with a chicken and then killing the animal. He was released from prison on 29 Jan and then arrested again on 12 June on allegations of a parole violation.

He was charged with sexually abusing and killing a chicken at a Valparaiso motel in 2001.