Cat-Cooking Plea

A man pleaded innocent Monday to cooking his girlfriend’s two cats in a microwave oven after a squabble. Larry Heine, 31, of Torrance faces four misdemeanor charges of animal cruelty, with the possibility of two years in prison and a $4,000 fine if convicted, said Torrance city prosecutor J.D. Lord. Trial was scheduled for Feb. 9. The cats have not been seen since Oct. 26, when, neighbors said, Heine fought with his girlfriend, Lori Stevens, and she left their home. Heine then announced that he would shoot her or bake her cats in the microwave, the neighbors told police. He later allegedly threw the cats, which were convulsing and foaming at the mouth, into a neighbor’s yard.