Troubled TN Shelter Raided by Authorities

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Sheriff's deputies in Shelby Co, TN executed a search warrant this week at the Memphis Animal Shelter:


According to the search warrant, "detectives have learned that some animals have been deprived of food and water while at the Memphis Animal Shelter," and while in the shelter's care, "some dogs have been starved to the point of requiring euthanasia."

District Attorney Bill Gibbons said an investigation into practices at the shelter was launched after his office received a tip from a citizen earlier this month.

Gibbons said one or more people could face criminal charges. Up to 300 animals were inside the shelter, but officials did not say how many were in bad condition.
So I guess we can hold out hope that they may have fed at least some of them?

This shelter is no stranger to cruelty allegations, as this report from last month illustrates:

The incident in question took place at the animal shelter last Friday, when an injured dog ended up buried beneath bags of euthanized animals. The animals were on their way to an incinerator where dead animals are burned.
The employee involved in this incident kept his job.

Failure to properly feed the dogs in their care has been alleged in recent months as well, although the shelter denied the allegations:


The complaint alleges the shelter was at full capacity, ran out of food, and a dog fight began when an employee trying to stretch the food supply brought one dish into a cage.

"We were never out of food," [Memphis Animal Shelter administrator Ernie] Alexander said.

He then explained what really happened.

"We had an influx of dogs to come in from both the city and the county, where we had three to four animals per kennel," he said.

Alexander claimed the dog fighting was due to the overcrowding, and not a food shortage.

That was in July. So if there truly was no food shortage but now the dogs are starved nearly to death, either someone's lying or intentionally starving the shelter pets. Will everyone keep their jobs this time?



Click on title above to go to YesBiscuits blog where you can leave comments for this article;
http://yesbiscuit.blogspot.com/2009/10/troubled-tn-shelter-raided-by.html

Update: Buffalo Field Campaign

Here we have a case of buffalo and elk extermination by the BLM due to the fact that they have a disease THEY CAUGHT FROM CATTLE!

I just wish the powers-that-be would leave the buffalo and wild horses alone and let them run free on our public lands

Weekly Update from the Field October 22, 2009

While there is currently little activity in the field, volunteers are beginning to return to BFC headquarters, preparing for this coming years' bison migration. Meanwhile, the government is considering a new Bovine Brucellosis Program that continues to cater to livestock interests and again fails wild bison and elk. One of the Interagency Bison Management Plan partners, USDA Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has put forth a concept paper, which they intend to turn into a regulatory program.

YOUR COMMENTS ARE NEEDED to help wild bison and elk in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. APHIS is accepting comments through December 4, 2009, but please be sure to send yours as soon as possible and encourage your friends to join us in this effort.

HERE'S THE SCOOP: The US Dept. of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), one of the agencies behind the slaughter of more than 3,600 wild bison in the past 10 years, is planning to create a new set of rules for brucellosis, the cattle disease upon which the bison slaughter is blamed. APHIS is accepting public comments until December 4th, 2009.

A Concept Paper for a New Direction for the Bovine Brucellosis Program outlines the thinking of the ranching industry and animal health bureaucracy on eradicating brucella abortus from native bison and elk populations in the Greater Yellowstone area (GYA). APHIS also aims to update its brucellosis rules for cattle ranchers within a yet to be drawn "designated surveillance area" in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. Surveillance boundaries will be set by each state and part of its purpose is "surveillance, prevention, and disease management in elk and bison."

As APHIS lacks legal authority over wildlife it seeks to "partner" with states and federal land management agencies like the U.S. Department of Interior to potentially vaccinate and deliver contraceptives to reduce the "prevalence" of brucellosis in elk and bison.

APHIS states: "Eradication depends on finding the last remaining brucellosis-reactor animal, the last remaining brucellosis-affected herd, and eliminating the disease from wildlife reservoirs. All potential risks for exposure and transmission of brucellosis from infected wildlife populations must be mitigated and eliminated as well. Currently, the last known reservoir of disease is the wildlife populations in the GYA."

There is currently no way to eradicate brucellosis without killing tens of thousands of elk and America's last wild bison that inhabit millions of acres in the ecosystem. And there is no future guarantee that cattle or another source could re-infect native wildlife again.

Entirely missing from the livestock industry's narrative is the fact that brucellosis originated in European and African livestock imported into the United States that eventually spread to and infected native elk and America's last remaining wild bison.

BFC reviewed APHIS' concept paper and we have put together suggested talking points to your government.

You should be sure to personalize and elaborate to make them your own:
* Remaining wild elk and and native bison populations in the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem are irreplaceable. These native wildlife species belong to the American people and are part of our cultural heritage. The public trust responsibility for protecting native wildlife must *not* be compromised for the sake of disease eradication programs that are costly, intrusive and likely to fail.

* Protecting native wildlife species as wild, native species needs to come first. Vaccination, capture, blood testing, and slaughter are techniques developed in and for the livestock industry and are *not* acceptable management practices for native wildlife.

* Natural resistance to brucellosis in native bison and elk is poorly understood by scientists. Nutrition is key to wildlife's natural resistance to disease infection. A high priority for funding should be placed on habitat conservation and acquisition to meet the foraging needs of native wildlife including protection of migration corridors permitting free dispersal of migratory species across the landscape.

* The U.S. government must impose a ban on the artificial or supplemental feeding of native elk and bison by state wildlife agencies and stop its complicity in permitting these activities on National Forest and Bureau of Land Management lands. These taxpayer funded practices unnaturally congregate wildlife and are widely viewed by scientists as vectors for disease including Chronic Wasting Disease for elk and deer.

* Given the profound ecological damages caused by grazing livestock on public lands, the U.S. government should phase-out and retire cattle grazing allotments in known elk and bison ranges to provide habitat for native wildlife and reduce co-mingling with cattle that harbor diseases dangerous to native wildlife.

* Current vaccines including RB 51 were designed for domesticated cattle and *not* for native wildlife species. Hence, current vaccination programs of elk and bison is ineffective at conveying immunity. Furthermore, no effective field delivery system exists resulting in native wildlife being captured for vaccination and subject to stress, injury, and death.

* Brucellosis in cattle is a localized issue. Properly fencing and vaccinating cattle is a prudent step for ranchers to implement in known elk and bison ranges. Depopulating entire cattle herds is an inappropriate APHIS requirement when individual cattle are found to be infected with the disease.

Read a list of citations BFC used for supporting information.

You can read the document online here. Please feel free to email us with any questions, comments, or suggestions you have.

TAKE ACTION: APHIS will accept public comments online here.

-OR-

You can mail your comments through the postal service. APHIS requests that you send two copies. If you choose this route, please mail your comments to:

Docket No. APHIS-2009-0006
Regulatory Analysis and Development
PPD, APHIS
Station 3A-03.8
4700 River Road Unit 118
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238.

*Please state that your comment refers to Docket No. APHIS-2009-0006.

Unfortunately, APHIS is not providing an email address to send comments to, nor even a contact person. It would be a good idea to mention your frustration with this, and you might want to mention to APHIS that they need to inform the public of the designated personnel in charge of the comment process, which they have failed to do

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Lee Ann Thomas, Director, Ruminant Health Programs, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 43, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-6954.

Thank you so much for taking the time to make your voice heard for our last wild buffalo herds!

Roam Free!
------------------------------
* Help Buffalo Field Campaign Help the Buffalo
Thanks to each of you who took the time to cast your vote for BFC in the Christies Cookies Charity contest. While we didn't finish in the top 12, and therefore didn't win one of the cash prizes, we received thousands of votes and finished 23rd. Considering how late we learned about and registered for the contest, we did extremely well. But we really could definitely have used the funding for our bison protection programs.
With the migration likely to begin in just a few weeks, we are busy making preparations to defend the bison in the field and in the legal and policy arenas. We need your help to successfully protect the bison. Below are a few ways you can help.

Donate to Buffalo Field Campaign. Donations are tax deductible and are the most effective way for you to help BFC protect the bison.

Purchase a BFC water bottle or tee shirt. BFC's newest and most popular merchandise item is our stainless steel Klean Kanteen water bottle. These bottles are available for $25 including shipping and handling.

Donate an item on the BFC Wish List or earmark a monetary donation to help us purchase some of these much-needed items.

If you'd rather contribute with a check, please mail to: BFC, PO Box 957, West Yellowstone, MT 59758

THANK YOU!
------------------------------
* Last Words
"Elimination of brucellosis in wildlife should not be the burden of livestock stakeholders; it should be the responsibility of wildlife agencies."
~ Anonymous livestock stakeholder

Do you have submissions for Last Words? Send them to bfc-media@wildrockies.org. Thank you all for the poems, songs and stories you have been sending; you'll see them here!
------------------------------
* Kill Tally
AMERICAN BISON ELIMINATED from the last wild population in the U.S.
2008-2009 Total: 22
2008-2009 Slaughter: 3
2008-2009 Hunt: 1
2008-2009 Quarantine: 0
2008-2009 Shot by Agents: 2
2008-2009 Highway Mortality: 16
2007-2008 Total: 1,631
Total Since 2000: 3,702*
*includes lethal government action, quarantine, hunts, highway mortalities



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Media & Outreach
Buffalo Field Campaign
P.O. Box 957
West Yellowstone, MT 59758
406-646-0070
bfc-media@wildrockies.org
http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org
BFC is the only group working in the field every day in defense of the last wild buffalo population in the U.S.






http://www.buffalofieldcampaign.org/media/update0910/102209.html

Strangles in Dogs / New Canine Flu Closes Down Shelter

STRANGLES, CANINE - CANADA
**************************
A ProMED-mail post

ProMED-mail is program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases


Date: 14 Oct 2009
Source: CBC.ca [edited]



Rare pneumonia kills 2 Ottawa dogs
----------------------------------
A total of 2 dogs at the Ottawa Humane Society shelter have died from a
rare and severe form of canine pneumonia in the last 2 months. Humane
society veterinarians said they have never seen this type of disease
before. The dogs initially suffer from a cough, lethargy and fever, but the
signs rapidly progress, with the animals coughing up blood and dying within
a day.

The 1st humane society dog developed signs in mid-summer [2009], while the
2nd got sick in early September. Since then, staff have treated every dog
with antibiotics, disinfected every pen, and briefly placed a moratorium on
adoptions. The moratorium was lifted a week ago. Dr Shelly Hutchings, a
humane society veterinarian, said the illness is caused by bacteria --
known as _Streptococcus equi_ -- that typically causes mild disease in
horses. In dogs, infection is rare but severe, causing hemorrhagic
pneumonia. The disease does not spread to humans.

Hutchings said little is known about how dogs contract the disease, and
there is no vaccine to prevent it. "It's frightening for sure," Hutchings
said. "We don't really know what the incubation period is. There's a lot we
don't understand about transmission or which dogs it will affect." Experts
believe dogs in shelters may be susceptible because they are stressed by
cramped quarters and constant barking.

Bruce Roney, Ottawa Humane Society executive director, said the infections
highlight the need for the new shelter, which is slated to open in 2011.
"We don't have proper isolation space in this building," he said. "It makes
[diseases] so difficult to control." Roney said no new cases of the disease
have been seen at the shelter, and the pneumonia hasn't shown up in any
adopted dogs.

The humane society has asked area veterinarians to watch out for the
clinical signs.

--
communicated by:
ProMED-mail


[The disease is not necessarily new, but there remains some mystery around
how the dogs acquire it, particularly in those having no apparent contact
with horses. The most common theme of some of these outbreaks has been the
association with pneumonia.

As early as 2002 this was called canine infectious respiratory disease
(CIRD). It was reported following pneumonia and was cultured from airways.

An article, "The association of _Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus_
with canine infectious respiratory disease" published by Science Direct
includes the following statement: "CIRD is a multifactorial infection that
affects many kennelled dogs despite the wide use of vaccination. Current
vaccines aim to protect against viral agents and a single bacterial agent,
_Bordetella bronchiseptica_. We sought to examine the role of streptococcal
species in CIRD. The isolation and identification of streptococci in the
lower respiratory tract of clinically healthy dogs and those with CIRD were
used to correlate the presence of specific streptococcal species with
respiratory disease. In this study we report that the presence of _S. equi
subsp. zooepidemicus_ is associated with increasing severity of disease in
a population of kennelled dogs with endemic CIRD." The article can be found
at
.

_Strep equi_ in canines was also reported in: Canine strangles case reveals
a new host susceptible to infection with _Streptococcus equi_. J Clin
Microbiol 2006; 44(7): 2664-5. doi: 10.1128/JCM.00571-06. See
.

Another article: American College of Veterinary Pathologists. A clonal
outbreak of acute fatal hemorrhagic pneumonia in intensively housed
(shelter) dogs caused by _Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus_. Vet
Pathol 2008; 45: 51-3. See
.

_Streptococcus equi subsp. equi_ is the etiological agent of strangles and
is responsible for nearly 30 per cent of all reported equine infections
worldwide (Chanter, 1997). The very closely related organism _Streptococcus
zooepidemicus_ (_S. equi subsp. zooepidemicus_) has also been found to be a
significant cause of equine lower airway disease, foal pneumonia,
endometritis, and abortion (Chanter, 1997). In dogs, _S. zooepidemicus_ is
associated with hemorrhagic streptococcal pneumonia (HSP) (Garnett et al,
1982). The HSP syndrome is a severe infection, in which sudden death can
occur without any prior clinical signs. In general, dogs with higher _S.
equi subsp. zooepidemicus_ scores of infection were more likely to have
severe alveolar damage (Chalker et al, 2003).

In the past, identification of _S. equi_ bacteria usually relied on culture
of the bacteria, but this technique is slow and not very sensitive. A
recent study (Newton, 2000) has shown that repeated nasopharyngeal swabbing
and culture of _Streptococcus equi_ could not detect the development of
healthy carriers in more than 50 per cent of equine strangles outbreaks.
_S. equi_ was sometimes not detected by culture of nasopharyngeal swabs
from carriers for up to 2 or 3 months before nasal shedding resumed
sporadically. The study found that PCR was a more sensitive technique for
detecting _S. equi_ on swabs: many more known positive swabs were detected
using PCR than using culture (56 of 61 swabs positive by PCR vs. 18 of 61
swabs positive by culture). Similar results were obtained for equine
guttural pouch samples from 12 established carriers (PCR 76 per cent vs.
culture 59 per cent). PCR also allows differentiation of the 2 subspecies,
_equi_ and _zooepidemicus_.
.

And ithis article -- Zoonotic transmission of Streptococcus equi subsp.
zooepidemicus from a dog to a handler. J Med Microbiol 2009; (DOI:
10.1099/jmm.0.012930-0)

indicates that _Streptococcus equi subsp. zooepidemicus_ infection may,
under some circumstances, be a zoonotic disease.

While this may be possibly Canada's 1st case of canine strangles, the
disease has been around for several years. - Mod.TG]

[Equine strangles - Canada: (BC) 20090417.1466]

....................tg/ejp/sh

Swamp to sandwich: Fla. gators sliced and diced

By BRIAN SKOLOFF Associated Press Writer
The knives are sharpened and the shiny steel gurneys bloodied at All American Gator Products, the end of the line for about 1,000 alligators killed during this year's hunting season in Florida.

It's the busiest time of year here at one of the state's largest gator processing plants, where the toothy reptiles make their first stop on a path from the swamp to a hamburger bun, a basket of nuggets or a spot on a shelf full of handbags, wallets and souvenir heads.

Roughly 6,000 alligators are killed each year in Florida during the 11-week public hunting season from August to November. Most end up at one of the state's 34 licensed processors.

All American and its co-op partners process roughly 200,000 pounds of alligator meat — about 2,800 gators annually — for sale to individuals and restaurants.



On a recent afternoon in the yellow-walled warehouse that looks like a morgue, workers in yellow rubber aprons sliced into half-skinned gators splayed out on steel tables.

A few feet away, others diced up meat into nuggets and filets, while at another table, workers weighed, bagged and boxed slabs of the chicken-like flesh. A nearby room held stacks of gator hides.

The facility smells like, well, alligator — a fishy, overpowering stench that takes a little getting used to.

To owner Brian Wood, "It smells like money."

"Anytime the plant is smelly, that's a good thing," Wood said.

After 21 years in business, he supplies alligator meat to 38 states using major distributors like Sysco Corp., the largest food distributor in North America.

Last year, Wood had about $1.2 million in sales, 70 percent from alligator meat, which generally goes for up to $9 a pound.

The hides, too, were once valuable, used by high-end retailers such as Prada and Gucci for purses, handbags, belts and wallets.

But with the economic downturn, the values have plummeted, Wood said.

Just two years ago, hides were going for $57 a foot, mainly to overseas buyers. That dropped to about $44 per foot last year. Now, practically nothing.

"I have 800 hides I have not been able to sell," Wood said.

He also preserves intact, after removing the flesh and bones, up to 10 percent of the gators he processes for hunters who want them made into stuffed trophies.

"Some people also want the skins tanned into leather, and we'll manufacture products for them so that way they can have a wallet or briefcase or boots made from their alligator," Wood said.

With its annual gator hunt, Florida is like other Southern states populated by the large reptiles, including Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas.

And with more than a million gators, Florida typically has no shortage. Last year, 22,447 alligators were killed there, said Stephen Stiegler, a biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. That includes animals taken during the public hunt, hunts on private lands and reptiles taken from the wild because they had become nuisances, a potential danger to people or their pets.

The state also had 57 licensed farms operating last year that killed an additional 27,444 alligators for sale on the market.

Most of the dead gators end up at processors.

Wood only handles the wild ones.

He said gator meat sales have been stable for years, but to supplement his revenue in tough times he has recently made the leap to iguanas.

South Florida has tens of thousands of the nonnative lizards, the offspring of pets turned loose to reproduce in the wild.

Wood has contracts with several towns and country clubs to capture them. He processes the lizards and sells the meat and hides, just like gator.

"They call it the chicken of the tree. It's very tasty meat," he said, adding that many people from Central and South America eat iguana.

But alligators are still his mainstay.

"It started out as a novelty but a lot of people really enjoy it," Wood said. "It tastes ... kinda like a fishy chicken or a scallop."

The grill sizzles at Harry and the Natives Restaurant up the road in Hobe Sound, where manager Jeff Brown serves up to 30 gator burgers a day. The restaurant also serves gator hash for breakfast and spicy Buffalo gator bites.

"It's actually a real nice flavor and it's much leaner than almost any meat going, just about 2 percent fat," Brown said.

Customer Gregg Lake sat at the restaurant bar recently, preparing to eat his first alligator burger, sandwiched on a bun with lettuce and tomatoes.

He eyed it carefully, grasping it with both hands, took a quick sniff, and chomped.

"Mmmmmm, very good," Lake said, still chewing. "That's fantastic. I know this is gonna sound funny, but it tastes like chicken."


Wilbert Barrientos, left, Mimmo Giuliani, Jakub Hryniewicz, and Irwin Collado, right, lift an alligator up on a table at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Two alligators lie on the floor waiting to be processed at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Wilbert Barrientos skins an alligator at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Alligator meat is chopped up at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

An alligator is pulled on a floor on its way to being processed at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Iguanas wait to be processed as David Paredes skins an iguana at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Alligator meat sits ready to be shipped at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

An alligator head is on display at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

An alligator waits to be processed at All American Gator Products in Hallandale, Fla. Monday, Sept. 21, 2009. It's the busiest time of year at one of the state's largest gator processing plants where the reptiles make their first stop from the swamp to a hamburger bun. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)


http://license.icopyright.net/user/viewContent.act?clipid=379611550&mode=cnc&tag=3.5721%3Ficx_id%3D20091015-pf1onfile-V7188

U.S. Supreme Court Says Animal "Crush" Videos OK

...and I am sooooo ashamed to love the law right now.

----------------------------------------

Resurgence of Animal Crush Videos Reinforces Need for Federal Depiction
of Animal Cruelty Law
September 15, 2009

Small animals like kittens, puppies, rabbits, and mice get crushed to
death in "crush videos."
With the U.S. Supreme Court set to consider the constitutionality of a
federal anti-animal cruelty law on Oct. 6, The Humane Society of the United
States revealed the results of a new investigation showing a recent resurgence
in the same horrific animal "crush" videos that sparked the law's passage
a decade ago, now once again widely available on the Internet as
enforcement efforts have been hindered.
The enactment of the Federal Depiction of Animal Cruelty Law in 1999
halted the proliferation of animal crushing operations, and has also been used
to crack down on commercial dog fighting operations, in which the animals
often fight to the death for the amusement of viewers. The HSUS' most recent
investigation shows that since the law was struck down by an appellate
court last July, crush videos have re-proliferated on the Internet in response
to the court's ruling.
"The federal Depiction of Animal Cruelty Law is the only tool available to
crack down on this horrific form of extreme animal cruelty," said Wayne
Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States. "We
wouldn't allow the sale of videos of actual child abuse or murder staged for
the express purpose of selling videos of such criminal acts, and the same
legal principles apply to despicable acts of animal cruelty."
"More than 10 years ago law enforcement in my district alerted me to the
problem of thousands of 'crush videos' on the Internet. To combat these
perverse videos that show horrific acts of animal cruelty, I introduced the
Depictions of Animal Cruelty Act and it was enacted into law in 1999 with
strong bipartisan support," said Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Calif. "HSUS'
investigation revealing the widespread proliferation of crush videos since the law's
legal challenge makes the need for the this sensible but strong federal
animal protection law perfectly clear."
The videos and photographs show women, often in high-heeled shoes, impaling
and crushing to death puppies, kittens and other small animals, catering
to those with a fetish for this aberrant behavior.
The HSUS recently conducted extensive Internet research and undercover
email communication to ascertain the availability of small animal crush videos
for sale on the Internet. The crushing videos were easily available for
purchase and horrifying in the cruelty inflicted on the victims. The password
protected part of one website had 118 videos for sale. The videos were of
small animals, including rabbits, hamsters, mice, tortoises, quail, chicken,
ducks, frogs, snakes, and even cats, being tortured and crushed. The
animals were burned, drowned, and had nails hammered into them.
Videos ranged in price from $20 to $100. Each of the videos for sale
contained footage of multiple animals, translating into hundreds of small
animals being tortured and crushed to death for the profit-making of this one
website alone.
Undercover investigators also established contact with another crush
website and were offered for sale 12 crush videos featuring rabbits. Another
website contacted offered for sale 17 mouse crush videos.
"We wouldn't allow people to sell videos of people actually abusing
children and raping women, and for good reason. It's vital to protect the
community from the violence that flows from those who perpetrate such inexcusable
crimes," said Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va. "The same legal principles apply to the
malicious acts of cruelty revealed by The HSUS' recent crush video
investigation. We do not tolerate illegal animal abuse, and we should not tolerate
those who profit from it."
The Depiction of Animal Cruelty Law
* Congress passed the federal Depiction of Animal Cruelty Law
(Section 48) in 1999 with overwhelming bipartisan support.
* The law criminalizes the interstate sale of depictions, such as
video, in which "a living animal is intentionally maimed, mutilated, tortured,
wounded, or killed, if such conduct is illegal under Federal law or the
law of the State in which the creation, sale, or possession takes place."
* January 2005: _Robert Stevens_
(http://www.hsus.org/acf/news/bob_stevens_083109.html) was convicted in a jury trial of knowingly selling
graphic depictions of animal cruelty with intent to place those depictions in
interstate commerce for commercial gain. Stevens had been selling graphic
videos depicting actual dog fights, which are illegal in all 50 states.
* May 2005: Stevens appealed his conviction to the Third Circuit
Court of Appeals, which overturned the conviction and found that the Depiction
of Animal Cruelty Law was facially unconstitutional because it violated
First Amendment free speech guarantees.
* December 2008: The U.S. Solicitor General filed a petition for
certiorari requesting that the Supreme Court review and overturn the Third
Circuit's decision. The HSUS filed an amicus brief in support of the Solicitor
General's petition.
* April 2009: The Supreme Court agreed to review the Third Circuit's
decision.

The justices said they would review, at the request of the federal
government, an appeals court decision that said Congress's broad attempt to
discourage animal cruelty by outlawing its depiction violates the First Amendment.

(Newser) – Animal cruelty takes the floor of the Supreme Court tomorrow,
(today, and they ruled FOR animal cruelty saying torturing animals is
protected by the first amendment) as the justices consider whether to overturn an
appeals court judgment that allows the depiction of animal cruelty under
the auspices of the First Amendment. The lower court wasn’t keen on animal
cruelty, but found that our furry friends—unlike children, say—“would likely
not suffer continuing harm by having their images out in the marketplace.a
DIDN'T THESE ANIMALS SUFFER BEING TORTURED WHILE THESE VIDEOS WERE MADE?

The primary case was of a dog trainer who sold videos, purportedly for
educational purposes, which included dogs attacking pigs and each other.
Interestingly, Newsweek notes, he was prosecuted under a 1999 law that was
intended to quash so-called “crush videos,” made for fetishists who get off on
the high-heeled death of small animals. If the court overturns the ruling,
depictions of animal cruelty would join the likes of child porn as
expression not protected by the First Amendment.
—Harry Kimball

Source: (http://www.newsweek.com/id/216740) _Newsweek_
(http://www.newsweek.com/id/216740)

Supreme Court to Weigh Legality Of Animal Abuse [Crush] Videos

[Ed. Note: Crush videos show the crushing to death of living animals
(kittens, rats, rabits,etc.)[Ed. Note: Crush videos show the crushing to death of
living animals (kitt
From WashingtonPost.Fro
The Supreme Court yesterday (5/27/09) turned to the gruesome, announcing
that it will decide next term whether fetish films that depict the killing of
small animals and videos of dogfights are protected by constitutional
guarantees of free speech.
The justices said they would review, at the request of the federal
government, an appeals court decision that said Congress's broad attempt to
discourage animal cruelty by outlawing its depiction violates the First
Amendment.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit in Philadelphia voted 10 to 3
last summer to find unconstitutional the rarely used law passed by
Congress in 1999. The appeals court said the goal of protecting against animal
cruelty was a worthy one, but one already accomplished by laws in all 50
states and the District of Columbia outlawing the practice.
The appeals court noted that the Supreme Court is resistant to removing
First Amendment protections of depictions even of illegal actions. The last
time the court did so was over child pornography.
"Preventing cruelty to animals, although an exceedingly worthy goal, simply
does not implicate interests of the same magnitude as protecting children
from physical and psychological harm," the appeals court said.
The law was passed in order to combat a phenomenon most people have never
heard of: "crush videos." According to the House report that accompanied the
bill, the videos depict "women inflicting . . . torture [on animals] with
their bare feet or while wearing high heeled shoes. . . . The cries and
squeals of the animals, obviously in great pain, can also be heard in the
videos."
The report said the videos appeal to people "with a very specific sexual
fetish," and because often only a woman's leg or high-heeled shoe is shown
inflicting the torture or death to the puppies, kittens and other animals,
prosecution under animal cruelty laws is difficult.
But the broadly written law, which outlaws depictions of almost any form of
animal cruelty, apparently has never been used for prosecuting crush
videos. Instead, it snared Robert Stevens of Pittsville, Va., who was convicted
and sentenced to 37 months in jail for selling videos of pit bull fights to
undercover agents operating out of Pennsylvania.
Stevens was not accused of taking part in the filming of the videos, one
of which showed a dog ripping apart the jaw of a pig . Lawyers for Stevens
said the government apparently has used the law only three times, all for
videos about dogfights. But the lawyers said the exceptions in the law, for
"serious religious, political, scientific, educational, journalistic,
historical or artistic value," show that the images have some First Amendment
value.
The Humane Society of the United States also had urged the court to review
the law, saying that the sale of crush videos on the Internet had "all but
disappeared" after the law was passed but that sales had been revived by
the decision that the law was unconstitutional.
"We wouldn't allow the sale of videos of actual child abuse or murder
staged for the express purpose of selling videos of such criminal acts, and the
same legal principles apply to despicable acts of animal cruelty," the
society's president, Wayne Pacelle, said in a statement...
***************
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