WLBT 3 - Jackson, MS: Rewards offered for information on animal fighting

Rewards offered for information on animal fighting

By Julie Straw - bio | email

Staging animal fights is against the law and now authorities have a new tool to enforce the law and track you down.  These are the victims of animal fights.  Roosters and pit bulls injured so badly, many of them have to be euthenized.  Law enforcement says the dog fighting and cockfighting rings are hard to locate.

"They don't advertise, they don't put up billboards.  They do these things in the country and places where they can't be observed," said Hinds County Sheriff and Jackson Police Chief Malcolm McMillin.

They are asking for your help.  The Humane Society of the United States has teamed up with Mississippi law enforcement agencies to offer a reward to anyone who offers information leading to the arrest of a fighter.  "If you are brave enough to step forward and report this person you deserve a reward," said Dale Bartlett, deputy manager of animal cruelty for The Humane Society of the United States.

Mississippi is no stranger to animal fights.  Last November 12 pit bulls were confiscated in Warren County where they were believed to be training for a fight.  In January three Jackson men were arrested for fighting pit bulls.   A big bust in June when 53 roosters were taken from Eugene Davis's Bolton home.

Nine people were arrested, but roughly 50 people attended the fight.  "Dog fighting and cockfighting are a real problem in Mississippi, certainly more than some others.  One of the reasons for that might be the penalties in particular for cock fighting are very low," said Bartlett.

Cockfighting is considered only a misdemeanor in Mississippi punishable by a maximum $500 fine.  Mississippi is one of five states where animal cruelty is not a felony.

"If you might be in the business and you think that is a sport, we are going to do our best to show you that it is not," said McMillin.

State Representative Cecil Brown says he plans to introduce legislation in the next session to improve animal cruelty laws.  If you would like more information about the reward program, call the HSUS at 202-452-1100.