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Tag: Cockfighting

  • Chicken Boxing Defended By Louisiana Senator

    Chicken boxing, according to one Louisiana senator, is very different from cockfighting, and a bill that would seal up loopholes in a state cockfighting ban would threaten what he calls a legitimate sport.

    Sen. Elbert Guillory says that chicken boxing is a much less bloody sport and isn’t fought to the death; instead, the animals wear rubber gloves that cover their legs while engaging in the sport, which is much like kickboxing. Guillory says that veterinarians are always on hand to monitor the events, as well.

    “Instead of a blade or exposed spur, they hit each other with these boxing gloves on, which is quite safe,” Guillory said at a hearing. “There’s no blood…There is a legitimate sport known as chicken boxing. It has nothing to do with cockfighting, and it is clear that this bill would interfere, would criminalize that legal enterprise.”

    The bill that Guillory is fighting would impose tougher penalties for anyone engaged in any act of cockfighting, and that isn’t limited to chickens; now included are roosters and game fowl. However, he says the bill will harm families who have raised the animals strictly for the sport.

    “My concern is about the breadth of this bill,” Guillory said. “It covers all chickens. I represent a rural area where people raise a lot of chickens, including chickens that are 15th- and 20th-generation fighting birds that are exported legally and legitimately to other nations.”

    John Goodwin of the Human Society says that there is no such thing as “chicken fighting” and that the term “is just a creative excuse the cockfighters have come up with to mask their real agenda, which is to maintain the weakest penalties for cockfighting possible.”

    James Demoruelle, a cockfighter for 53 years, spoke up in Guillory’s favor, saying the bill would hurt someone like him since he has around a quarter of a million dollars in cockfighting paraphernalia.

    “God put the gameness in the chicken, not man,” Demoruelle said. “We don’t make them fight. You can’t make a gamecock fight if it doesn’t want to fight.”

    Image via Thinkstock

  • Chicken Boxing: Louisiana Senator Insists That It’s Not Cockfighting

    A Republican senator from New Orleans expressed his concern over a bill that would tighten the state’s cockfighting ban, saying that it would shut down the less bloody sport of “chicken boxing”. Surprisingly, this seemingly bizarre discussion took place during an actual session in the Louisiana Senate chambers.

    The Senate Committee for Judiciary C discussed Senate Bill 523 on Tuesday morning, upon the initiative of Democrat Sen. J.P. Morrell (New Orleans). The loophole-closing bill, which was sponsored by Morrell, extends the state’s ban on cockfighting to include gamefowl, rooster, and other types of birds. In addition, the bill prohibits the use of cockfighting equipment, including knives and spurs, when paired with evidence showing their use in training fowl to fight. Violators of the law will also be given higher penalties for first and second offenses.

    Republican Sen. Elbert Guillory criticized the bill, declaring that it expands the existing law too much. He was worried that the legislation would put a stop to “chicken boxing”, a sport that does not require the use of razors and spurs on the birds.

    The 69-year-old senator from Opelousas pointed out that some of the paraphernalia indicated in the bill are used in “the legitimate sport of chicken boxing” such as spur covers made of leather and plastic.

    Morrell interjected by asking Guillory to elaborate on the sport of chicken boxing. He also implied that it might be a made-up sport created to “circumvent cockfighting”.

    According to Guillory, chicken boxing is similar to human boxing in that it is non-fatal. However, other lawmakers present in the session like Republican Sen. Robert Adley (Benton) was puzzled by Guillory’s analogy.

    A surprised Morrell claimed that he had never heard of the sport and added that the fact that two birds are made to fight each other is already outlawed by the 2008 cockfighting ban.

    Cockfighting is a rural tradition considered illegal in all 50 states, and 40 of them treat the activity as a felony. Louisiana was the last state to officially outlaw rooster fighting.

    The Brutality Of Cockfighting (Graphic)

    Image via YouTube

  • New York Cockfighting Ring Is Busted

    New York Cockfighting Ring Is Busted

    A cockfighting bust, referred to as “Operation Angry Birds,” resulted in three separate raids on Saturday and Sunday. Officials discoverd a bloody late-night cockfight in the dark and dirty basement of a vacant Queens store.

    Police discovered birds waiting for their fights kept in sacks hanging from the walls, officials said on Sunday.

    An estimated 3,000 birds were confiscated, and more than 70 people rounded up in the largest cockfighting bust and rooster rescue in state history, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said.

    “Cockfighting is a cruel, abusive and barbaric practice that tortures animals, endangers the health and safety of the public and is known to facilitate other crimes. My office, along with our partners in law enforcement and animal welfare, are committed to ending this vicious blood sport.”

    A large number of the birds found had been altered to cause more damage to other birds by removing their natural spurs and replacing them with sharper metal spurs, unethically attached to their bodies.

    Officials identified some of the men arrested in Queens and facing felony charges as Elisandy Gonzales, Orlando Bautista, Noel Castillo, Francisco Suriel, and Edward Medina. They are accused of violating a state law prohibiting animal fighting, as well as conspiracy.

    About 70 spectators who took part in the fight were taken to the 102nd Precinct. The criminal complaint against three of the suspects said cockfights were held in the Jamaica Avenue basement twice a month.

    The spectators were cheering a fight when the officers, backed up by State Police troopers and officers from the federal Department of Homeland Security, marched in. Also involved in the raid were experts from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), who took the birds to safety.

    ASPCA’s president Matthew E. Mershadker commented on the bust: “The brutality that’s associated with this is shocking. If you have a soul, if you have a conscience, you know very quickly that this is a vile, vile betrayal of what’s right. These animals suffer horrifically.”

    The ASPCA has set up a temporary shelter at an undisclosed location, where the birds will be cared for and given medical attention until they can be placed.

    The force and number of officials involved in this raid should speak volumes to anyone considering this horrific act, and help others to realize it is extremely illegal as well as immoral.

    Image via ASPCA

  • Operation Angry Birds Leads to Huge Cockfighting Bust

    New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman this week announced a huge cockfighting bust that has led to the arrests of nine people on felony cockfighting charges. The investigation, dubbed “Operation Angry Birds,” was led by the New York Organized Crime Task Force (OCTF) in cooperation with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

    According to the Attorney General’s office Authorities were able to rescue around 3,000 birds during the bust. The animals are being held at a temporary shelter established by the ASPCA.

    “No animal should be forced to fight to the death for human entertainment and profit, and we are proud to play a leading role in removing and caring for these victimized birds, as well as offering expert legal assistance in this case,” said Matthew Bershadker, CEO and president of ASPCA. “This collaborative investigation, intervention and enforcement is a giant step toward our shared goal of wiping out cockfighting in America.”

    The cockfighting raid took place this past weekend at three separate locations. On Saturday night/Sunday morning the OCTF, Homeland Security, and New York State Police raided a cockfighting venue located in Queens. The venue was secured with security cameras and attendees were charged for both admission and seats. Inside participants were able to purchase alcohol sold without a permit or use drugs openly while watching cock fights overseen by a paid referee.

    Around 70 people at the cockfighting event were detained. Six people determined to be the owners of fighting birds have now been charged with felony prohibition of animal fighting.

    During the same time period the OCTF executed a search warrant on a Brooklyn pet store named Pet NV. Authorities recovered fifty fighting birds from the pet shop’s basement. The shop’s 74-year-old owner has been charted with prohibition of animal fighting.

    On Sunday State Police and local law enforcement also raided a farm in Plattekill, New York. The ASPCA recovered upwards of 3,000 birds that were being secretly kept on the property. A farm manager and a farm hand have both been arrested and charged in connection with the cockfighting operation.