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Connecticut Oil Company President Illegally Owns Primate

Critter News

Pierce Onthank, the president of an oil and gas company, was charged in January with illegal possession of a primate for keeping a siamang, a type of gibbon that is native to rain forests in Malaysia and Indonesia and can weigh up to 30 pounds and stand 3 feet high. Tags: animal cruelty illegal pets primates us.

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Supreme Court to Review Legality of Animal Abuse Videos

Critter News

The justices said they would review, at the request of the federal government, an appeals court decision that said Congress's broad attempt to discourage animal cruelty by outlawing its depiction violates the First Amendment. Tags: us supreme court animal cruelty animal law. The last time the court did so was over child pornography.

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Appeal Denied for Six Activists Convicted Under AEPA

Critter News

Six members of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty were convicted at a 2006 trial in New Jersey of conspiracy to violate the 1992 Animal Enterprise Protection Act. The law, since revised, aimed to protect animal research laboratories from illegal, sometimes violent protests. It was a 2-1 decision by the US Court of Appeals.

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Suit Against Circus Owners Goes to Trial

Critter News

Finally, a cruelty suit against Feld Entertainment, which owns Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus, is coming to trial. employee, claims the defendants inhumanely and illegally mistreat their Asian elephants and have done so for decades. Tags: animal cruelty circus elephants.

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Ontario Animal Welfare Law Goes Into Effect

Critter News

The provincial government says it's gone from "worst to first" and Ontario is now the only jurisdiction in Canada with special protections for law-enforcement animals like police dogs and horses. Veterinarians are now required to report any instances of abuse or neglect.

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Freedom of Speech

Animal Ethics

The United States Supreme Court has ruled that the First Amendment protects depictions of animal cruelty. This does not mean that it protects animal cruelty, which is (and ought to be) illegal in every state.

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From Today's New York Times

Animal Ethics

To the Editor: Re “ Animal Cruelty and Free Speech ” (editorial, Oct. 6): I do not agree that “anyone with an appreciation for the First Amendment” must conclude that “crush videos” or videos of vicious dogfights are protected speech and that the federal law in question should therefore be struck down. Fred Engelhardt Alna, Me.,