Meat & human murder

May 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 2002:

ANTWERP, Belgium–More than 200 witnesses are expected to
testify in the anticipated seven-week trial of four men for the
February 1995 murder of Belgian veterinary inspector Karel Van
Noppen, shot multiple times in his car while investigating illegal
traffic in clenbuterol, a banned steroid used to promote livestock
growth. The trial began in Antwerp on April 14, 2002.
Van Noppen was believed to have been the victim of a “hit” by
the so-called “hormone mafia.” He was seeking indictment of cattle
breeder Alex Vercauteren at the time of his murder, but police were
unable to build a case against Vercauteren, now facing charges,
until an unidentified informant fingered arms dealer Carl De Schutter
and traveling fair worker Albert Barraz, who reportedly became
acquainted while serving prison time together. Apprehended in France
in 1996, De Schutter named Vercauteren and livestock dealer Germain
Daenen.

Dogfighting

May 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 2002:

Year 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 to 3/31_____
Major busts 11 24 54 66 75 27 [projects to 108] Related drugs/homicide 3 9 13 12 16 6 [projects to 24] People involved 76 136 237 297 282 40 [projects to 160] Dogs seized 95 365 791 896 869 428 [projects to 1,612] Felony convictions 1 2 7 25 18 14 [projects to 42]

Cockfighting
Year 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 to 3/31_____
Major busts 10 15 18 19 35 20 [projects to 80] Related drugs/homicide 0 6 6 3 5 3 [projects to 12] People involved 350 498 389 874 1508 460 [projects
to 11,840] Birds seized 725 763 1023 876 7995 1759 [projects to 7,036] Felony convictions 0 0 3 9 0 1 [projects to 42]

A “major bust” for the purposes of this table is defined as
any police seizure or arrest of any size that was recognized as
newsworthy by local news media. This definition is used because we
have no practicable way of tracking the volume of activity which goes
unreported, and because excluding cases simply because they involve
relatively low numbers of animals or alleged perpetrators might miss
important trends–such as the apparent decline of casual
street-corner dogfighting in 2002, even as the number of “major
busts” is up 33% and the average number of dogs seized per case has
almost doubled from 2001.

Cockfighting tripled in five years

May 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 2002:

WASHINGTON D.C.–The number of reported U.S. cockfighting
arrests has more than tripled in five years, a review of ANIMAL
PEOPLE file data has discovered.
The number of fighting cocks seized by law enforcement is up tenfold.
Law enforcement agencies throughout the nation are anxiously
looking toward the 2002 Farm Bill for help, as an amendment approved
by the House of Represent-atives in October 2001 and by the Senate
in February 2002 could bring federal aid by outlawing the interstate
transportation of fighting cocks. As ANIMAL PEOPLE went to press,
however, cockfighting lobbyists and members of Congress from New
Mexico, Oklahoma, and Louisiana were reportedly still trying to
strip the anti-cockfighting amendment from the reconciled Farm Bill
that was expected to go before the House and Senate for final
approval perhaps as early as April 25.

Hangin’ judge Roy Bean “justice” prevails in Texas for feral cats

May 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 2002:

WACO, Texas–Circa 1883, Val Verde County justice of the
peace Roy Bean, “The Law West of the Pecos,” ruled at one of the
most infamous trials in U.S. history that “There ain’t no law in the
state of Texas against killing a Chinaman.”
That verdict was recalled on March 19 in Waco when a McLennan
County jury decided that there is no law in the state of Texas
against killing a feral cat, no matter how it is done.

Feral cats, “gophers,” & Canadian politics of cruelty

May 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 2002:

TORONTO, OTTAWA–Con-vincing Ontario Court Judge Ted Ormston
that their intent was to produce an artistic statement about
slaughtering animals for meat, two men who videotaped themselves as
they slowly tortured a cat to death walked free on April 18.
Anthony Wennekers, 25, was sentenced to the time in jail he
had already served since his June 2001 arrest. Jesse Power, 22,
reportedly the son of two wealthy Montreal artists, drew 90 days in
jail to be served on weekends, plus house arrest and three years on
probation.

Busting an abuser? Get a warrant!

May 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, May 2002:

RALEIGH, N.C.–The North Carolina Court of Appeals on April
16 threw out six cruelty convictions against Carolyn Nance of Rowan
County because county animal control officers seized her six horses
in December 1998 without a warrant.
The county contended that no warrant was necessary because
the horses were in imminent jeopardy and were clearly visible from
public property. However, three days elapsed between when the
horses were first seen and when they were taken.

Survivors of Farallon de Medinilla shelling get a break–& wise-users get judicial blast

April 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, April 2002:

WASHINGTON D.C.– Judge Emmit Sullivan of the U.S. District
Court for the D.C. Circuit on March 13 ruled that the U.S. Navy and
Department of Defense are violating the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty
Act by using the island of Farallon de Medinilla in the northern
Marianas for bombing and gunnery practice.
The island is nesting habitat for at least two dozen
protected bird species, including great frigatebirds, masked
boobies, and endangered Micronesian megapodes. Admitting that birds
are often killed, the Navy applied for an incidental take permit from
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1996. The Fish and Wildlife
Service refused to issue the permit. Then the Navy claimed no permit
was needed.

State legislative roundup

April 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, April 2002:

Anti-cruelty bills

INDIANAPOLIS–Indiana Governor Frank O’Bannon in mid-March
signed into law bills enabling felony cruelty prosecutions and
criminalizing possession of animal fighting paraphernalia, annonced
American SPCA Midwest representative for government affairs Ledy Van
Kavage.
Bills to introduce felony cruelty penalties were still alive
in Alaska and Kentucky as ANIMAL PEOPLE went to press, while law
enforcement officers joined humane advocates in Fort Smith,
Arkansas, on February 25 to announce a petition drive by Citizens
for a Humane Arkansas to put a proposed felony cruelty bill on the
2002 state ballot. Citizens for a Humane Arkansas must gather 75,000
voter signatures in favor of the bill by June 30.

Lawmakers warm to freeing dogs from chain gangs

April 1, 2002 Dylan Forest Leave a comment

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, April 2002–
HARTFORD, Connecticut– Connecticut legislature judiciary
co-chair Michael Lawler (D-East Haven) on February 27 told news media
that he expects to see a “fair amount of support” for a newly
introduced state bill to limit the amount of time that dogs can be
kept outdoors on chains.
Some U.S. and Canadian municipalities have ordinances against
prolonged chaining, but no state is known to have explicit
legislation against it, despite a growing body of evidence that
chaining tends to make dogs more territorial and more dangerous,
especially toward small children.

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