Recently in dog fighting Category

The Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down a law aimed at banning videos that show graphic violence against animals, saying it violates the right to free speech.

From the AP story posted on the Daily Breeze website:

The justices, voting 8-1, threw out the criminal conviction of Robert Stevens of Pittsville, Va., who was sentenced to three years in prison for videos he made about pit bull fights.

.... In dissent, Justice Samuel Alito said the harm animals suffer in dog fights is enough to sustain the law.

 

Thanks to Daily Breeze crime reporter Larry Altman for alerting us to the news that a 24-hour tip line to report dog fighting has been launched in Los Angeles County.

The program will pay tipsters up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest or conviction of individuals involved in dog fighting. From the press release:

Beginning today, residents can call 1-877-NO2FITE and provide information about a dog fighting ring, an upcoming dog fight or an individual who is involved in dog fighting.

If someone is aware of a fight in progress, they should call 911 immediately, said District Attorney Steve Cooley.

"Our goal is to encourage citizens to help law enforcement root out a brutal crime that often goes unreported and occurs in the shadows," Cooley said during a press conference.

The Humane Society of the United States is co-sponsoring the program. 

Calls will be answered by a person 24 hours a day.

The Humane Society estimates that dog fighting is widespread in L.A. County. And dog fighting, Cooley said, often leads to busting people of other crimes, including drug dealing and weapons possession.

"We expect that these tips will be a starting point for major criminal investigations," he said.

I still remember talking with a young boy, probably about 10, at the Long Beach dog park one afternoon maybe 15 years ago. He was walking home and stopped by just to visit the dog park with a friend. He mentioned to me that someone in his neighborhood was involved in dog fighting and that the kids sometimes went to watch. I was horrified and urged him never to watch such a thing, that it was both immoral and illegal, and that someone really should report it. But ever since I was sorry I didn't try to get more information out of him about who and where so I could have reported it to the authorities myself.

Animal control and police officers I've spoken to since acknowledge dog fighting goes on in our local communities. But because it operates in such an underground world, they have a very hard time getting enough details in a timely manner to make arrests.

Maybe this hotline and the monetary rewards will help.