Push for Florida bestiality law goes 'back to square one'

Lawmakers fail to address a proposed law banning bestiality, worried about being accused of wasting time on an outrageous topic.

BY CRISTINA SILVA

Herald/Times Tallahassee Bureau
TALLAHASSEE -- From every angle, a ban on bestiality, long pushed by state prosecutors and animal rights activists, seemed poised to finally become law this year, with Republicans and Democrats in both chambers of the Florida Legislature joining forces to push it through.

Yet it failed.

The inability to outlaw something so repugnant reveals how difficult it can be to get even the most carefully crafted, widely supported bill passed in the Florida Legislature.

Its advocates say that in the political stew of a legislative session, the very outrageousness of the topic worked against it.

Lawmakers said they did not want to be accused of wasting time addressing a rare crime when Floridians needed them to help create jobs. They also did not want to debate the icky subject in public meetings occasionally frequented by children.

``The whole thing just kind of collapsed, unfortunately, and so we are back to square one,'' said Nan Rich, the Senate's incoming minority leader, who has tried since 2008 to close this loophole in the law.

House Majority Leader Adam Hasner said he had hoped for a different outcome.

``I made a personal commitment last year to make sure the House would criminalize that type of disgusting, barbaric behavior,'' he said.

News reports of Floridians having sex with animals are infrequent, but draw fierce outrage all the same.

There was the Panhandle man who sexually battered and asphyxiated a pregnant goat in 2008. In West Palm Beach, there was a man who molested his neighbor's dog in 2004. Leon County has the story of a man who sexually battered his guide dog in 2005.

``While it is not something that we think is a widespread problem, Florida ought to be able to prosecute these cases when they do happen,'' said Jennifer Hobgood, Florida State Director for the Humane Society of the United States.

Animal rape was not always legal.

A 1971 Florida Supreme Court decision struck down a law written in 1868 that banned bestiality on the grounds that is was too vague. The law prohibited, ``abominable and detestable crime against nature, either with mankind or with beast.''

State prosecutors said the court decision made it difficult to convict people who have sex with animals. They must prove the suspect violated Florida's animal cruelty law, which prohibits tormenting or hurting an animal.

``Obviously it is not as easy to prove that it [the sexual act] tormented the animal as it would be as easy to say, `it is illegal to have sex with an animal,' '' said Georgia Cappleman, a chief assistant state attorney in Leon County.

As a result, prosecutors might only pursue misconduct charges or other lesser crimes, said Jeanne Howard, a chief assistant state attorney in Palm Beach County.

``We often have to prove injury or repeated inflictions of pain that we are not always able to do with these kinds of cases,'' she said.

Still, few lawmakers have expressed interest in banning bestiality in recent years.

``They just don't like to discuss sex and animals,'' said Rep. Jim Waldman, D-Coconut Creek.

The Senate passed the measure twice, but it did not earn so much as a hearing in the House until this session, when Hasner proposed a compromise. The ban was tucked into an omnibus agriculture bill, which passed in the House.

But the Senate passed a different agriculture bill on the last day of the session that would have allowed some gun owners to store their guns in their vehicles in previously exempted locations. The bill also added a fertilizer provision that would make it easier for localities to approve strict ordinances. With mere hours left before the session's close, the House refused to take up the gun and fertilizer language, effectively slaying the agriculture bill.

A separate bill that addressed only bestiality never made it to the House floor.

Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, summed up the topic's unpopularity: ``It is yucky.''

Cristina Silva can be reached at csilva@sptimes.com.

Therapy programme ordered over donkey bestiality charge


August 3, 2010

A 16-year-old boy who admitted bestiality with a donkey has been ordered to do a therapeutic programme after an appearance in the Youth Court in Christchurch. Permission was granted for a Christchurch Court News reporter to attend the hearing in the Youth Court, which is normally closed to media.

Names and other details of young people appearing in the court are automatically suppressed.

Judge John Strettell decided to allow only very limited reporting of the case, in which Ruth Buddicom acted as youth advocate for the boy.

He said the age and gender of the young person could be reported, along with the outcome of the case.

He ordered that the boy undergo a therapeutic programme and remanded the case to November 2 so that a judge can review progress.



Courtnews.co.nz

LANCASTER, Wis. -- Two Amish brothers are facing a string of sexual assault charges, including committing incest and engaging in bestiality, on a Grant County farm.The Grant County sheriff said it's one of the strangest and most disturbing cases he has seen.Authorities issued two criminal complaints on Tuesday for the men -- Christian G. Stolzfus, 19, of Fennimore, and Dannie G. Stolzfus, 18, of Fennimore.

They were the subjects of a three-month investigation by the Grant County Sheriff's Department and the county's Department of Social Services.The men face charges involving at least six different family members and multiple animals.Christian Stolzfus is charged with repeated sexual assault of a child, four counts of first-degree sexual assault of a child under the age of 13 without great bodily harm; attempted first-degree sexual assault of a child under the age of 13 without great bodily harm; two counts of incest; exposing genitals or pubic area; and two counts of sexual gratification with an animal.

Authorities said that they believe these incidents occurred during a four-year period.Dannie Stolzfus is charged with two counts of incest and sexual gratification with an animal. Authorities said that they believe these incidents occurred over a three-year period.Investigators said that the some of the incidents occurred at an Amish farm in Hickory Grove Township. Additionally, some of the actions that Christian Stolzfus is accused of committing are alleged to have occurred at another farm in Mount Ida Township.Authorities said the victims, at the time, ranged in age from 5 to 16 years old."The age of (the victims) is a concern to us," Grant County Sheriff Keith Govier said. "There was also some developmental issues with some of the victims. And hopefully their work with Social Services will address those things."

The sheriff said that surprisingly, and contrary to the Amish culture, the family reached out for help and contacted Social Services. By law, the agency got in contact with the Sheriff's Department about the alleged incidents.

The allegations were investigated over the past three months and on Tuesday charges were filed against the two brothers."I don't believe this is indicative of the Amish community here in Grant County, because through this, this family has reached out and accepted Social Service services," Govier said. "They've also accessed mental health services to deal with this."Govier said that that the animals allegedly involved were a cow and a horse.

The two men have not yet been arrested. Instead, the Grant County Sheriff's Department said they will be summoned to court to face the charges against them.If convicted of the charges, Christian Stoltzfus faces more than of 400 years in prison. Dannie Stoltzfus faces nearly 90 years in prison, if convicted.

No court dates have yet been set.

Police are investigating a case of bestiality after a Delft teenager allegedly sexually assaulted a dog at the weekend.

Although most animal welfare organisations say it is rare for them to treat sexually assaulted animals, the SPCA says it deals with about six reported cases a year, most of which do not go to court.

Tessa, an adult pitbull cross, was brought into the SPCA on Saturday after its owner, Sanele Nanti, said he saw a teenage boy sexually assaulting the dog.

Tessa is undergoing treatment at the SPCA.

Her genitals are swollen, she has a limp and is malnourished.

The SPCA's Allan Perrins said Tessa was "depressed, quiet, and cowering and shaking in the back corner of her kennel".

"It is typical behaviour of an animal that has been sexually abused," he said.

Nanti said he heard Tessa crying on Saturday. When he opened the curtains of his front room, he saw the boy raping his dog. He said he ran outside to catch the boy, who then let Tessa go.

Nanti reported it to the police, a police van was sent out, but the officers returned without the boy.

Nanti then laid a charge of bestiality.

A policeman close to the investigation said they were investigating and the docket would be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions for a decision on whether to prosecute the youth.

The SPCA's Allan Perrins said Tessa was "depressed, quiet, and cowering and shaking in the back corner of her kennel".

"It is typical behaviour of an animal that has been sexually abused," he said.

MUSKEGON — A Muskegon man who was meeting with his parole officer for a previous crime, allegedly told the officer he had sexually assaulted his pet pit bull. Now Jose Antonio Sanchez, 58, of 230 E. Grand, could spend 15 years in prison if convicted, authorities say.

Sanchez was arraigned in Muskegon County 60th District Court last week before Judge Harold F. Closz III one count of sodomy, a 15-year felony.

Closz set his bond at $50,000 and scheduled a preliminary examination for Aug. 17.

According to a Muskegon Police Department report, the alleged assault on Aug. 2 was reported to authorities by Sanchez’s parole officer.

The dog — which was examined by a veterinarian to confirm the assault had taken place — has since been removed from Sanchez’s home and was placed with Pound Buddies Rescue in Muskegon, police said.

According to the Michigan Department of Corrections website, Sanchez was previously convicted in 1998 for a second-degree sexual assault case involving a person under the age of 13.

He was paroled in January 2009, according to the MDOC.

A man is facing a criminal charge after he was caught allegedly trying to have sex with a sheep.

The 34-year-old Mid Canterbury man appeared in the Ashburton District Court on July 26.

He was remanded on bail on one charge of attempting to commit an act of indecency with a sheep.

The lawyer representing the man applied for a suppression order prohibiting the publication of his name, occupation and address after the Herald on Sunday started making inquiries about the incident.

It is understood a woman jogging saw the alleged incident on the outskirts of a small town, about an hour away from Christchurch, and reported it to police.

Ashburton Sergeant Victoria Walker refused to comment on the case as it was before the courts.

The man has applied for legal aid and will reappear in court on August 23. He is the second person to be charged in relation to having sex with animals in Canterbury this year.

In April a 16-year-old youth appeared in the Christchurch District Court charged with bestiality after allegedly having sex with a four-year-old donkey he had taken into the middle of a suburban reserve.

http://apn-images.adbureau.net/apn/accipiter/images/AE0.gif XXXIXXX CCID: 39263 | adwidth=300 <A HREF="http://ads.apn.co.nz/accipiter/adclick/CID=0000995fc6ccf58e00000000/aamsz=300X250/POS=POS2/SR=1/acc_random=84587843583/pageid=71718422675/site=NZH/area=CAT.CRIME.STY/keyword=man tried sex sheep crown animals national facing criminal charge caught allegedly trying year old mid canterbury appeared ashburton district court july remanded bail attempting commit act indecency lawyer representing applied suppression order"> <IMG SRC="http://apn-images.adbureau.net/apn/b.gif" ALT="" width=300 height=250 BORDER="0"> </A> http://apn-images.adbureau.net/apn/b.gif The youth has since admitted the offence and undergone a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation.

Article 2. STAFF:

All members are subject to the same forum rules, and regulars and especially staff are expected to set an example with a higher standard of conduct, rather than expecting exceptions to be made. Staff are expected to help EZ members, and they are expected to have the maturity to express their personal views in a constructive manner, rather than conflict with supporting EZ as a whole.

EZ does not turn blind eyes to willful misconduct or abuse of any kind, no matter how much or who by. We also do not allow people to be "scapegoated" for things they may have not really done. We try to give a fair chance up front, and a moderator's job is to both protect the forum from disruption, and also to protect newcomers or other members from flames and misjudgments. So moderation is a delicate act.

The cross-dressing man was caught with the animal in the dry moat of King Henry VIII's Pendennis Castle overlooking Falmouth Bay in Cornwall.

The 33-year-old mounted the pet after it chased him out of sight of its woman owner.


The owner had been walking around the ancient castle with a friend when the pair spotted the lone transvestite on the morning of Saturday July 10th at around a quarter to twelve.

He was wearing a black dress and walking around the steep-walled, empty moat.

As the two ladies spotted the cross dresser he ran away. Later one of the dogs chased after the man; by the time the women had caught up, the man was having sex with the pet.

Castle staff then restrained the man while police were called.

Pendennis Castle, managed by English Heritage, is a popular family tourist attraction and was heaving with visitors in high season.

He was escorted home and later made a "full and frank confession", and received a caution for outraging public decency.

A police spokesman said: "Other agencies were liaised with and he was handed over to them".

A spokesman for English Heritage said: "This was a very rare incident".

S.F. considers banning sale of pets except fish
Carolyn Jones, Chronicle Staff Writer

July 8, 2010 04:00 AM Thursday, July 8, 2010



Sell a guinea pig, go to jail.

That's the law under consideration by San Francisco's Commission of Animal Control and Welfare. If the commission approves the ordinance at its meeting tonight, San Francisco could soon have what is believed to be the country's first ban on the sale of all pets except fish.

That includes dogs, cats, hamsters, mice, rats, chinchillas, guinea pigs, birds, snakes, lizards and nearly every other critter, or, as the commission calls them, companion animals.

"People buy small animals all the time as an impulse buy, don't know what they're getting into, and the animals end up at the shelter and often are euthanized," said commission Chairwoman Sally Stephens. "That's what we'd like to stop."

San Francisco residents who want a pet would have to go to another city, adopt one from a shelter or rescue group, or find one through the classifieds.

The Board of Supervisors would have final say on the matter. But not before pet store owners unleash a cacophony of howling, squeaking and squawking.

"It's terrible. A pet store that can't sell pets? It's ridiculous," said John Chan, manager of Pet Central on Broadway, which has been in business 30 years. "We'd have to close."


'Terrible for our business'
Joe Taylor, bird manager of Animal Connection on Judah Street, called the proposal "ludicrous."

"What difference does it make if you get a parrot at the SPCA or a pet store? If it doesn't work out, in either case, you just bring it back," Taylor said. "This would be terrible for our business."

The idea originated about two years ago, when the commission began looking into a ban on dog and cat sales as a way to discourage puppy and kitten mills. But the city's animal control staff said that excess puppies and kittens are not the problem at the city shelter, thanks to the plethora of rescue groups. In any case, only one or two pet stores in San Francisco sell dogs and cats. The rest stick to small animals.


The hamster problem
The real problem, staff said, is hamsters.

People buy the high-strung, nocturnal rodents because they're under the temporary impression that hamsters are cute and cuddly. But the new owners quickly learn that hamsters are, in fact, prone to biting, gnawing through expensive wiring and maniacally racing on their exercise wheels at 2 a.m.

So the animals end up at the shelter. Just about every species has its own rescue group in San Francisco, but no one seems to want hamsters. Hamsters are the No. 1 animal euthanized at the city's shelter, said San Francisco Animal Care and Control director Rebecca Katz.

"It's definitely a concern," she said. "They're an impulse buy, and we do sometimes get tons of them, especially babies."


Committed owners
On Wednesday, the shelter, which is on 15th Street in the Mission District, had six hamsters, nine rabbits, nine mice, nine rats, two guinea pigs, a bowl of goldfish, two birds, a leopard gecko, a bearded dragon and a hermit crab named Charlie.

But those shelter hamsters almost certainly did not originate at a pet store, said Michael Maddox, general counsel for the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council in Washington, D.C.

Studies by UC Davis and the National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy have shown that only a small fraction of shelter animals were purchased at pet stores, he said. People who buy animals at pet stores are just as committed, emotionally and financially, to caring for their pets as people who procure pets elsewhere, he said.

"This is an anti-pet proposal from people who oppose the keeping of pets," he said. "If their goal is to ban the ownership of pets entirely, then this is a good first step."

The commission plans to listen to testimony from pet store owners, among others, before voting. Among the items it will consider is the impact on small businesses, whether to allow the sale of feeder rodents for snakes and other reptiles, the sale of fish, owner education, penalties and rescue groups that host adoptions at pet stores.

"We're still in the information-gathering phase," said Commissioner Philip Gerrie, who is sponsoring the proposal. "We're trying to get at the problem of people buying these creatures with the best intentions, but then the reality turns out quite different."


Meeting tonight
San Francisco's Commission of Animal Control and Welfare meets at 5:30 p.m. today at City Hall, Room 408, to consider an ordinance banning the sale of pets, except for fish, in San Francisco.