Source: http://www.wnbc.com/news/4178664/detail.html
Roosters Seized In Bronx Cockfighting
Raid
(1010 WINS)
(NEW YORK) Fifteen fighting cocks and 10 common roosters were
seized after a police officer saw a man carrying one of them outside of a Bronx
house, animal protection authorities said Tuesday.
The police officer
questioned the man, who then led the officer to a basement where the roosters
were being kept, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
said.
The officer called in the ASPCA because it is illegal to possess a
live chicken in New York City, ASPCA spokesman Joe Pentangelo
said.
<snip>
Source: http://1010wins.com/topstories/local_story_040064436.html
(New York -WABC, February 9, 2005 ) — Police say there could be arrests to come after a raid on a cockfighting ring in the Bronx.
The ASPCA says it found 25 roosters bred for fighting hidden in a basement in the Morrisania section.
Inspectors found drugs and 15 of the roosters had been
surgically altered and fitted with sharp blades for fighting. Those birds will
have to be put down.
Does This Seem Like A Form Letter That Just Keeping Oozing Like Puss From A Festering AR Boil?
PETA DEMANDS JAIL TIME IF ALLEGED MARSHALL COUNTY COCKFIGHTERS ARE CONVICTED
Community Should Fear for Public Safety, Say Experts
For Immediate Release:
February 9, 2005
Contact:
Martin Mersereau
757-622-7382
Marshall County, Iowa --- This morning, PETA sent an urgent plea to Marshall County Attorney Jennifer Miller, urging her to vigorously prosecute Ignacio Lizarde-Herrera and Juan Sanchez Armas, both of whom face felony charges related to an alleged cockfighting operation. Authorities reportedly discovered as many as 66 "fighting" birds in their charge between two Marshalltown houses on February 4, as well as knives and spurs. The discovery was reportedly made in the execution of a drug warrant.
"Cockfighting is the sport of cowards," says PETA Casework Division Manager Martin Mersereau. "Birds have razor-sharp blades strapped to their legs and commonly suffer broken wings, pierced eyes, and punctured lungs. The losing birds are typically thrown together in a pile and left to die slowly. People who demonstrate such disregard for suffering can pose a risk to the community at large." Mersereau also points out that animal fighting is almost invariably associated with drugs, weapons, and illegal gambling.
PETA is also sending its new anti-violence public service announcement hosted by actor Dennis Franz to TV stations serving the Marshall County area.
<snip>
Source: http://www.peta.org/mc/NewsItem.asp?id=5884
Reference: Gamefowl News Thurs 16 Dec 2004
.......Fighting chickens cannot be offered for adoption and will be destroyed after the court cases........
Could We Call This One Breed Specific, No Matter What You Do With Them?
Chicken owner says birds were not for fighting
It's been so long since police raided Terry Gillum's chicken coop that some
of the eggs have hatched.
That means the evidence is
growing.
These are not the colonel's chickens.
Gillum, of Des
Moines, faces a felony charge as part of a central Iowa crackdown on alleged
gamecock owners. Two men were arrested in Marshalltown last week and their birds
were also confiscated.
Animal control officers, acting on a tip, went to
Gillum's home in the 700 block of Southeast Vale Street in mid-December and
hauled away 42 roosters, 10 hens, and some eggs.
Gillum argued that there was no city ordinance against the chickens, and he
denied that they were raised for fighting contests. He says they are show
birds.
He and 27 other people were arrested in 1989 at a cockfight in
Ankeny. He said he paid the fine, did the community service, and left the
illegal activity behind.
Gillum declined comment Tuesday.
Officers
took everything to a large room at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, where the birds
are now held in six rows of cages. The brood has expanded to include 19 immature
but relatively large chickens.
They are deep-chested, muscular-looking birds with rigid tails that sweep
nearly straight up, a cascade of feathers flowing to the rear. Many have burnt
orange and black feathers. Some sport streaks of brown and white. Others are
fitted with what look like little red helmets to cover where their combs were
trimmed, which Police Sgt. Scott Raudabaugh said is "consistent with fighting
chickens."
Gillum faces up to five years in prison on the felony charge.
He also is in alleged violation of city ordinances that govern animal neglect,
possession of too many animals, and possession of illegal animals.
In a separate case, two men in Marshalltown were charged Friday with raising
fighting birds.
Marshalltown police and agents with the Mid-Iowa Drug
Task Force discovered a half-dozen fighting birds along with spurs, knives and
other items associated with cockfights at the home of Juan Sanchez Armas, 27,
officials said. Officers then went to the home of Ignacio Lizarde-Herrera, 44,
where they reportedly found several dozen more chickens. Both men were charged
with felonies. The birds are being kept at the Animal Rescue League of Iowa in
Des Moines.
The life span of a confiscated gamecock can depend upon the duration of the criminal case, animal control officers said. Fighting chickens cannot be offered for adoption and will be destroyed after the court cases.
Source: http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050209/NEWS01/502090326/1002
Reference: Gamefowl News Wed 02 Feb 2005
........"In general, if a property owner invites us to come on the property then it's not always required,".......
Why Would ANYONE That Knows The AR Invite One On The Property?
Illegal search in Kahalu'u alleged
By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser
Staff Writer
The attorney for a Kahalu'u family whose children were removed by the state said yesterday that authorities acted improperly when they searched their property.
Attorney Melodie Aduja, who represents dog breeder James Montgomery, said state and city officials failed to obtain the necessary search warrant to gain access to the Montgomery property last week. Aduja said she would be filing a request in court to suppress all evidence obtained during the search.
Jacque Smith, Humane Society spokeswoman, said the seizure followed legal procedures.
"Our main priorities are to ensure that the animals are well cared for and to complete our investigation," Smith said. "We certainly take great care to ensure that our investigation processes and procedures are in compliance with all applicable laws."
Aduja also said the removal of 64 dogs from Montgomery's Kahalu'u kennel by the Hawaiian Humane Society was not lawful and she demanded the return of the animals. The Hawaiian Humane Society removed the dogs Jan. 29 and returned two days later with police officers to search for more animals, but none were found.
A police officer accompanying the Humane Society on the second visit decided that the living conditions were endangering the welfare of three children residing there and removed them from the home. The children were turned over to state Child Welfare Services officials.
The Montgomerys were to appear in Family Court yesterday, but proceedings there are confidential. The family had no comment on the case, Aduja said.
At a news conference at the Humane Society yesterday, Aduja said the initial visit to the property by the Humane Society, Department of Health Vector Control and the city Department of Planning and Permitting was done without a search warrant.
Aduja said the Humane Society used trickery to gain access to the property and although police had time to obtain a search warrant for the children, police failed to do so.
"Based on the unlawful activities of the agencies involved, the family is urging that the prosecutor's office not accept this case for further action, that the children be reunited with their parents as soon as possible and the animals be returned to the family immediately," she said.
Aduja yesterday delivered a letter of demands to the Hawaiian Humane Society asking for an inventory of all animals and items seized and the whereabouts of each animal. She also wants reasonable visitation, inspections and photographs of each animal to ensure the animals' safety and health.
The Humane Society is reviewing the requests, said Smith.
The organization makes a list of the animals it confiscates as a matter of procedure, she said. She said she didn't know if a search warrant was obtained prior to taking the dogs.
"In general, if a property owner invites us to come on the property then it's not always required," Smith said.
The Humane Society has said the organization had tried to work with Montgomery for two weeks before the seizure, but was unable to get the conditions improved.
Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.
Source: http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2005/Feb/09/ln/ln05p.html
Editorial: Bouquets & brickbats
February 9, 2005
Bouquet: pup pity
Mayor Martin Chavez, nationally renowned for defending canines from
antifreeze poisoning, now is ladling some largesse on prairie dogs.
He learned recently that airport officials were poisoning the rodents to keep
them from burrowing around the Sunport's runways. Chavez ordered the officials
to stop and look for more humane alternatives.
Prairie dogs, we admit, are a nuisance and even a danger to humans at times.
Airport officials worry the critters will undermine runway shoulders, which
could cause grief if a plane veers off the concrete. The critters, to their
credit, apparently aren't digging under the heavily paved runways - at least not
yet.
But it's always better for humans to accommodate their fellow creatures
whenever possible, rather than exterminate them.
Doggie defenders, including the group Prairie Dog Pals, are considering a
number of options. One, for example, would flush them out using nontoxic,
biodegradable soap, relocate them to a designated village on the West Side,
backhoe the area and lay down chicken wire to prevent prairie-dog-village
redevelopment.
We look forward to a harmonious outcome.
Brickbat: cockfighting
Among a number of animal-friendly bills before the Legislature this year is a
reliable, old standard: a law banning cockfighting in New Mexico. This year -
the Year of the Rooster on the Chinese calendar - lawmakers finally should pass
it.
New Mexico is one of only two states that allow the practice. Even here, 13
counties and 29 municipalities have outlawed it, including Bernalillo County -
and Albuquerque, which recently toughened its ordinance.
There are good reasons for these bans. The bottom line is that people simply
should not make a formal spectacle of pastimes that intend, and artificially
induce, creatures to kill one another. Such sports should have ended with the
closing of the Coliseum.
The Tribune has editorialized repeatedly in support of a cockfighting ban.
Let's do it.
<snip>
Source: http://www.abqtrib.com/albq/op_editorials/article/0,2565,ALBQ_19867_3534608,00.html
A SPECIAL HEADS UP For All Those Louisiana Legislators?
PETA's Lobster Problem: No Pain, No
Gain
Somebody pass the butter. A recent
Norwegian study reports that lobsters and crabs don't have the capacity to
feel pain. And the animal rights nuts at People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals (PETA) -- who run a "lobster liberation" website --
must be steaming.
Animal rights wackos have a long history of pursuing "lobster liberation." PETA's own website offers helpful "tips" on liberating lobsters from restaurants and supermarkets. It appears their pleas were taken to heart last year when PETA disciple and child actor Edward Furlong attempted to "liberate" a couple of lobsters from a Kentucky grocery store while in a drunken stupor. And then there's the international "Lobster Liberation Front," whose war on lobster fishermen has involved multiple acts of vandalism as well as direct threats.
The Guardian helps explain why lobsters and crabs can't feel pain, pointing out that they have only 100,000 neurons, whereas many vertebrates have upwards of 100 billion. Meanwhile, continuing its long tradition of ignoring inconvenient facts, PETA turns to supposed scientific evidence from the Coalition to End Animal Suffering and Exploitation to "prove" that lobsters feel pain anyway.
PETA employs the same half-baked tactics when questioning studies that show fish don't feel pain. They turn to "scientific experts" who just happen to be animal rights activists. It seems that something as inconsequential as science can't stop PETA and its ilk from pursuing its ultimate goal: "Total animal liberation."
Source: http://www.consumerfreedom.com/news_detail.cfm/headline/2743