Fourteen of 26 defendants are sentenced & lectured in British dogfighting case
From ANIMAL PEOPLE, September 2007:
BIRMINGHAM–Four-teen of 26 defendants in
one of the biggest dogfighting cases brought to
British courts in decades pleaded guilty on
September 3, 2007, and were fined from £500 to
£1,300, plus £80 court costs.
The case is unusual in that all 26 men
arrested at the February 2006 dogfight are
Muslims –as is Birmingham Magistrates Court
district judge Kal Qureshi, who lectured the men
about their “sadistic and cruel” behavior.
“The event itself is best described as
sadistic,” Qureshi said. “In my view it
involved inflicting unimaginable pain without any
pity for the animals.”
Qureshi fined them less than the maximum
£2,500 because they were first-time offenders.
Dogfighting in Britain has historically
not involved immigrants and ethnic minorities,
and in recent years has often been a pursuit of
so-called skinheads espousing anti-minority
attitudes.
Twelve defendants elected to go to trial,
including the two men who allegedly organized the
fight. Both dogs involved were killed.