A teacher who fed a puppy to a snapping turtle in front of pupils has been cleared of animal cruelty.
Robert Crosland had faced up to six months in jail and a $5,000 fine after he fed the puppy to the animal in March.
He had first tried to feed the dying puppy to a snake but failed so he dropped it into a tank with the turtle, which killed and ate it.
The court heard a recording from Mr Crosland that the puppy was sick and likely to die and he thought killing it was doing the right thing by "putting it out of its misery."
Mr Crosland's lawyer Shane Reichert told the Idaho State Journal "we didn't believe the facts amounted to a criminal offense when the law was applied."
Mr Crosland, who still teaches at the same school, said he felt "a lot of relief" after the verdict.
Several weeks after the turtle at the puppy, it was put down by state officials as it is deemed an invasive species.
At the time a local animal activist said: "Allowing children to watch an innocent baby puppy scream because it is being fed to an animal - that is violence.
"That is not okay."
