Circus Elephant Abuse Lawsuit Dismissed By Appeals Court

WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court on Friday upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by animal rights activists that claims the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus abuses its elephants.
The U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington agreed with a lower court judge that the Animal Protection Institute and a former Ringling employee Tom Ryder did not have the legal standing to sue the circus. The lower court found that Ryder was "essentially a paid plaintiff" because he received at least $190,000 from the animal rights activists pursuing the case.

The lawsuit claimed the circus is violating the elephants' protection under the Endangered Species Act with the use of bullhooks for training and prolonged chaining during train rides between shows.

Feld Entertainment Inc. argued the elephants are not hurt and that the instruments are necessary to keep the animals under control and protect public safety. The Vienna, Va.-based company runs the circus and has an elephant sanctuary in Florida.

Feld attorney John Simpson said the appellate ruling supports the company's $20 million racketeering lawsuit against Ryder, animal rights groups and their attorneys that claims they committed bribery, obstruction of justice and other illegal acts in filing the elephant suit. Simpson said the purpose of the company's suit is to keep animal rights groups from using the federal court system to pursue "radical agendas."

"Feld Entertainment is the target today and some other businesses are going to be targets tomorrow," Simpson said in a telephone interview. "And at some point it has to stop."

The Animal Protection Institute declined to comment on the ongoing litigation. But they are asking a judge to dismiss Feld's racketeering suit, calling it "a transparent effort to stifle any criticism of FEI's elephant treatment practices" and to bankrupt and punish the animal rights groups.

Victory! Suspected ‘Crush’ Video Ring Leaders Arrested

Here’s a reason for dogs, frogs, monkeys, mice, pigs and many other animals to smile: Dorma (“Chita”) and Vicente Ridon, the Filipino couple charged with crimes related to the production of a series of “crush” videos—in which scantily clad young girls engaged in the torture killing of animals—were arrested by the police on Tuesday morning. The couple has been charged with violations of child abuse and animal welfare laws, and are expected to face further charges involving human trafficking and wildlife protection laws. They are expected to face trial within the year.

The “crush” videos depict extreme cruelty to animals, including scenes of a rabbit as he or she was skinned alive, rabbits as they flailed and screamed while their ears were cut off and they were set on fire, a dog as he or she was burned with a clothes iron, a monkey and several dogs as they were repeatedly hit in the eyes with the sharp end of a stiletto heel, and puppies as they were crushed until they vomited their internal organs.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to report the Ridons’ whereabouts. We’re happy to see that Filipinos take animal welfare seriously and will do all they can to see justice served.


Posted by Rochelle Regodon

LandMark Case in the Works, Save the Orcas' from SeaWorld !

PETA Sues SeaWorld for Violating Orcas' Constitutional Rights

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In the first case of its kind, PETA, three marine-mammal experts, and two former orca trainers are filing a  Alawsuit  asking a federal court to declare that five wild-caught orcas forced to perform at SeaWorld are being held as slaves in violation of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The filing—the first ever seeking to apply the 13th Amendment to nonhuman animals—names the five orcas as plaintiffs and also seeks their release to their natural habitats or seaside sanctuaries.
The suit is based on the plain text of the 13th Amendment, which prohibits the condition of slavery without reference to "person" or any particular class of victim. "Slavery is slavery, and it does not depend on the species of the slave any more than it depends on gender, race, or religion," says general counsel to PETA, Jeffrey Kerr.
The five wild-captured orca plaintiffs are Tilikum and Katina (both confined at SeaWorld Orlando) and Kasatka, Corky, and Ulises (all three confined at SeaWorld San Diego).
"All five of these orcas were violently seized from the ocean and taken from their families as babies. They are denied freedom and everything else that is natural and important to them while kept in small concrete tanks and reduced to performing stupid tricks," says PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk. "The 13th Amendment prohibits slavery, and these orcas are, by definition, slaves."

In the aerial view of SeaWorld, one can see how little room orcas have. Inside the circle is Tilikum, whose nose and tail almost touch the ends of his tank. Image © 2011 Google

Orcas are intelligent animals who, in the wild, work cooperatively, form complex relationships, communicate using distinct dialects, and swim up to 100 miles every day. At SeaWorld, they are forced to swim in circles in small, barren concrete tanks. Deprived of the opportunity to make conscious choices and to practice their cultural vocal, social, and foraging traditions, they are compelled to perform meaningless tricks for a reward of dead fish.
Our understanding of animals grows every day. Animals are no longer regarded as "things" to dominate, but as breathing, feeling beings with families, dialects, intellect, and emotions. Just as we look back with shame at a time when we enslaved other humans and viewed some people as property less deserving of protection and consideration, we will look back on our treatment of these animals with shame. The 13^th Amendment exists to abolish slavery in all its forms—and this lawsuit is the next step.
The orcas are represented in the suit by what the law refers to as their "next friends": PETA, Ric O'Barry (a former orca and dolphin trainer and the star of the Academy Award–winning documentary The Cove), renowned marine biologist and orca expert Dr. Ingrid N. Visser, Orca Network founder Howard Garrett, and former SeaWorld trainers Samantha Berg and Carol Ray.
The groundbreaking suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California in San Diego.
Please help animals imprisoned by SeaWorld today. Click here to write to The Blackstone Group—the company that owns SeaWorld—and ask that it immediately set in place a firm and rapid plan to release the animals to sanctuaries that can provide them with an appropriate and more natural environment.

Posted by PETA

Tags:

SeaWorld, orcas, slavery, 13th Amendment

LandMark Case in the Works, Save the Orcas' from SeaWorld !

http://www.peta.org/b/thepetafiles/archive/2011/10/25/peta-sues-seaworld-for-violating-orcas-constitutional-rights.aspx

18 Bengal tigers killed in Ohio when only less than 1,400 live in the wild. Such a loss of life in Ohio for so many Lions, Tigers, Bears and More.

GlobalAnimal.org News Magazine: Your Daily Animal Connection, From Pets To Wildlife.

48 Escaped Exotic Animals Slaughtered In Ohio

October 19, 2011

ZANESVILLE, OHIO – In yet another case of animal versus man, animals lost big after a resident convicted of animal cruelty released a veritable zoo of 51 exotic animals and then shot himself. The wild animals, including lions, tigers, leopards, and grizzly bears, roamed residential streets on a rainy night until police shot and killed all but three of them.

When even an animal expert like Jack Hannah is saying the animals had to be killed in the middle of the night rather than wait until morning to tranquilize them, we have to question both our values and the decisions made in Ohio. The first bad decision was letting a rule expire that forbade the personal keeping of exotic animals – that law should be immediately reinstated. Secondly, police need to be trained to deal with this kind of increasingly common emergency and properly equipped with tranquilizer guns and the knowledge of how to use them. And finally, rather than using the opportunity to turn Ohio farmland into a middle-of-the-night big game hunt, cooler heads should have prevailed and set about warning residents to stay inside until all the animals could be tranquilized and accounted for. Yes, it might have taken 24 hours because animals hide after being darted so it has to be done during daytime, but more of these animals could have been saved. To kill Bengal tigers and lions, some of them no doubt used to human contact, is just another example of human insensitivity toward ‘inconvenient’ animals that have done nothing wrong by their mere existence. The fact that police were able to kill most of them in a short amount of time indicates the whole thing was a turkey shoot. We’re saddened and appalled at the fate of these animals, which were double victims – first in their captivity, second in their impulsive slaughter. – Global Animal

Photo credit: Getty Images

Moni Basu, CNN – Flashing signs on the highways in eastern Ohio warned motorists Wednesday: Exotic animals on the loose. Call 911.
Schools shuttered and some frightened residents said they were keeping to their homes as sheriff’s deputies hunted lions, tigers, leopards and grizzly bears that escaped from a preserve after the death of the owner.
Terry Thompson, 62, was found dead and authorities were waiting on the results of an autopsy, Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz said. Bu he added that preliminary investigations indicated Thompson released his animals and then died from a self-inflicted wound. He had pried open cages and left the farm’s fences open.
Thompson owned between 48 and 51 exotic animals. Lutz said most of them had been accounted for, but at least three — a mountain lion, a grizzly bear and a monkey — were still missing. Most of those that had escaped from their pens were put down.
Lutz said his deputies, who found themselves in a volatile situation, had to shoot some of the animals at close range. A Bengal tiger was put down after it got agitated from a tranquilizer shot.
“We are not talking about your normal everyday house cat or dog,” Lutz said. “These are 300-pound Bengal tigers that we have had to put down. “When we got here, obviously, public safety was my number one concern. We could not have animals running loose in this county.”
Zanesville Mayor Howard Zwelling said he received calls from people who were concerned that the animals had been killed. He said authorities were trying to use tranquilizers whenever possible to save their lives.
Sheriff’s deputies used night vision equipment until daylight Wednesday to continue their search, which was hampered by rain. Lutz said deputies, armed with shotguns, were patrolling areas in pickup trucks.
“There are still thought to be several dangerous animals on the loose, creating a public safety threat,” he said.

A dead lion shot In Zanesville Ohio.

Sam Kopchak, Thompson’s neighbor, said he saw lions and bears running free Tuesday evening. A tiger was chasing horses, he said.
Kopchak managed to get himself and his horse into his barn and telephoned his mother.
“We have a major problem,:” he told her. That’s when she called the police.
“It was like a war zone,” Kopchak said when authorities descended on Thompson’s property, set off the road named after Kopchak’s family.
Kopchak described Thompson as being aloof. He loved animals. Kopchak saw him driving one time with a baby black bear on his chest.
Lutz said authorities found primates inside the house.
The community was in a state of “shock and surprise,” said Tom Warne, owner of Donald’s Donuts and a lifelong resident of the city of Zanesville.
“It’s the craziest sort of thing,” he said.
Warne said he had met Thompson a few times. He used to come into the doughnut shop at one time.
Thompson had his run-ins with the law. He pleaded guilty earlier this year to federal charges of possessing illegal firearms, including five fully automatic firearms, and had just been released from prison on September 30. A civil case seeking forfeiture of firearms is still pending, according to the U.S. attorney’s office in Ohio’s Southern District.
Thompson also was convicted of animal cruelty and animals at large in 2005 and was arrested several times for traffic violations.
Lutz said law enforcement officials were well aware of Thompson’s animals and made numerous visits to the property to look into complaints and ensure that Thompson was in compliance with permits
Thompson’s property is about two miles outside Zanesville, Zwelling said. Authorities said they received reports of animal sightings by residents. Columbus Zoo director emeritus Jack Hanna drove into Zanesville overnight to assist in the search.
But Hanna warned that the search was dangerous and human life came first.
“We’re trying our best to make sure no one is hurt doing this,” he said.
He said the animals were probably hiding out from the rain, but his advice to anyone who encountered one was this: Don’t run. Just scream.
The menagerie of Thompson’s animals also included wolves, giraffes and camels. Commuters reported seeing bears and wolves along Interstate 70. Lutz said one cat was hit and left wounded on the road.
The Humane Society of the United States urged Ohio officials Wednesday to issue an emergency rule to crack down on exotic animal ownership.
A previous emergency order issued by then-Gov. Ted Strickland that prohibited people convicted of animal cruelty from owning exotic animals expired in April.
The Humane Society said Thompson “would almost certainly have had his animals removed by May 1, 2011, if the emergency order had not expired.”
“Every month brings a new, bizarre, almost surreal incident involving privately held dangerous wild animals,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society. “In recent years, Ohioans have died and suffered injuries because the state hasn’t stopped private citizens from keeping dangerous wild animals as pets or as roadside attractions. Owners of large, exotic animals are a menace to society, and it’s time for the delaying on the rulemaking to end.”
Fritz Douthitt, a volunteer at the Zanesville Animal Shelter Society, recalled Thompson’s 2005 trial for cruelty and torture of cattle and bison. He said he had not been able to get up the hill to feed his cattle and they died.
Douthitt said it is inappropriate for people like Thompson to keep dangerous animals as pets, just as it was to shoot so many of them. Local governments, she said, ought to train law enforcement officers so they are prepared for bizarre cases such as the one that unfolded in Zanesville.
For lions, tigers and bears to die, she said, was “unforgivable.”
http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/19/us/ohio-animals-on-loose/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

 

 

 

 

http://www.globalanimal.org/2011/10/19/51-escaped-exotic-animals-slaughtered-in-ohio/55715/