Greg Ed Ward, state representative from Tippah County (Ripley), is the chairman of the House agriculture committee. There’s an animal cruelty bill that makes cruelty a felony; it’s passed the Senate but, according to WAPT TV will die if Ward doesn’t call his committee to act on it:
Tuesday is the last day for House and Senate committees to act on bills that have passed the opposite chamber.The House Agriculture Committee is not scheduled to meet before Tuesday’s deadline, and that means the bill will be killed.Under the proposed bill, torturing or maiming cats or dogs would become a felony.
Here’s the bill, I think, so you can read it and decide what you think.
You can call Mr. Ward and complain (please be polite! rudeness is unpersuasive!) in Jackson– (601)359-3332 or in Ripley– (662)837-3615 (that’s his work number. Both numbers are from his House of Representatives web page. If you know him well enough, his home number is on the web page too). If any of the other committee members are your representatives or acquaintances, a call to them might help. Here’s the roster, and you can get contact info for each at this link:
Agriculture
Greg Ward, Chairman; Joe C. Gardner, Vice-Chairman
Members: Brian Aldridge; Tracy Arinder; Larry Baker; Larry Byrd; Tad Campbell; Blaine Eaton; Chuck Espy; Harvey Fillingane; David Gibbs; Andy Gipson; Frank Hamilton; Gregory Holloway; Bobby B. Howell; Mac Huddleston; Robert E. Huddleston; Sherra Hillman Lane; W. T. Mayhall, Jr.; America Chuck Middleton; John L. Moore; Ken Morgan; Billy Nicholson; David Norquist; Deryk R. Parker; Bill Pigott; Dannie Reed; Bobby Shows; Ferr Smith; Gary V. Staples; Preston E. Sullivan; Jerry R. Turner; Linda Whittington
Kingfish, thinking I only express annoyance at Republicans, more or less dared me to post about this. I suppose I should dare him to come out against torturing both animals and humans by posting in favor of the Geneva Conventions and against John Yoo…
Update
Ed Ward became Greg Ward thanks to bellesouth’s correction in comments. Don’t call this guy by mistake:
The sad part is it was double referred. They intended to kill this bill.
If they would leave the chickens alone the rest will pass.
Here’s the problem: we Mississippians elect to our state legislature people who do not automatically, just as a gut reaction, have any humane feelings toward animals. If Ed Ward is so ill-informed that humane treatment of animals has to be explained to him, and his vote has to be requested, then he’s a lost cause. And being from Tippah County, home of the infamous First Monday animal cruelty sales and exhibits, he’s perfectly happy with the status quo.
Forget it Jake, it’s Mississippi….
Good point about First Monday, Ben– last I heard, there was still cockfighting going on in the Tippah area.
I have a problem with certain provisions of the bill that could result in perhaps unintended bad consequences. For instance, I live in a rural area in the country. It is not unusual in such an area for very aggressive dogs to be roaming free and coming onto your property in your yard (eg, pit bulls, etc.). If such a dog enters my yard and shows aggression and will not leave, I am going to take care of that dog, if necessary —meaning I intend to engage in some self help and kill the dog. I am not going to let a dog terrorize and harm me and my family on my own property. (thankfuly, so far, I have not had to resort to this type of action …yet). Under this bill, as I read it, it appears to me that if I did engage in this type of action to protect myself and my family (and my pets), I could be found in violation of the statute and charged with a felony —-which, to me, would be ridiculous.
And another scenario that frequently occurs (more often with us country folk) involves stray dogs and cats that wander onto your property from time to time —-not the aggressive scenario I described above —-but, perhaps lost or abandoned. I am prone to try to help such dogs and cats, and may initially attempt to at least provide them some water and food. If they hang around long enough and behave themselves, they may become members of the family, so to speak. At what point in this scenario do us good samaritans have a legal duty under this proposed statute to keep these wandering lost or abandoned dogs and cats watered, fed, cared for, etc? The moment we try to help them? Or is something more required to trigger this responsibility?
It also appears that a kid shooting a bird, turtle, frog, etc. with a bb gun could result in prosecution of a misdemeanor per Section 1.
There also needs to be more clarification as to what type of actions would constitute “torture” of a vertebrate animal or creature. As we have seen re our discussions of the treatment of captured illegal enemy combatants, we all have differing interpretations as to what the term “torture” should mean with respect to humans (for instance, I don’t think loud music, uncomfortable temps, sleep deprivation, etc. constitutes “torture”, and I am certain that some of you think anything more than raising your voice during questionaing over a cup of coffee would qualify). Further, Section 1 of the proposed statute appears to me to be excessively broad in other unnecessary respects if your real intent is simply to protect dogs and cats. Section 2 is much more direct in that regard and is close to something that could be acceptable with more clarifaction of some overly broad and vague terms (as I previously referenced).
IMO, there are some legitimate problems with this bill, as drafted. I love both dogs and cats, and have a very healthy respect for all of God’s creatures, including game animals, fish , and birds. But there are some well-intentioned, but misguided idiots out there who I would not trust armed with the power of this proposed statute.
According to Wikepedia, the term “vertebrates” comprise cyclostomes, bony fish, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds.
Section 1 of the bill deals with any “vertebrate creature” (with the exception of humans and fish). Under this section, it would be a misdemeanor to kill or harm (or even “torment”, whatever that means) a snake, lizard, mole, armadillo, frog, squirrel (out of season), rabbit (out of season), crow, coyote, rat, mouse, etc. And there are some crazy folks out there who would interpret and attempt to enforce this statute in just such a manner.
Is Section 1 really necessary if your intent is to just protect dogs and cats? The way this story has been reported by the media thus far, and has been characterized by some, has been disingenuous, IMO. Quite obviously, the bill goes much, much further than simply protecting domestic dogs and cats. There seems to be an attempt by some to demonize anyone who objects to this bill as someone who advocates unjustified harming or torturing of dogs and cats, when there are legitimate issues and objections presented by this poorly drafted proposed legislation.
Wow, I just called, and they are very rude. The guy who answered refused to taek any message other than a name or phone number. They are obviously annoyed at the calls.
What has this world come too? As tax payers you should be more concerned about the funding of education in this state rather than animal cruelty laws. Don’t get me wrong, but common sense… And we wonder why Mississippi is always ranked last in just about everything. Another classic example of misguided Mississippi thinking..
DAMNATION, No more frog gigging.
I love frog legs with comeback sauce, coleslaw, fries and a cold beer. Yum, yum.
From wikipedia.com:”Frogs and toads are broadly classified into three suborders: Archaeobatrachia, which includes four families of primitive frogs; Mesobatrachia, which includes five families of more evolutionary intermediate frogs; and Neobatrachia, by far the largest group, which contains the remaining 24 families of “modern” frogs, including most common species throughout the world. Neobatrachia is further divided into the Hyloidea and Ranoidea.[3] This classification is based on such morphological features as the number of vertebrae, the structure of the pectoral girdle, and the morphology of tadpoles. While this classification is largely accepted, relationships among families of frogs are still debated. Future studies of molecular genetics should soon provide further insights to the evolutionary relationships among Anuran families.[4]“.
I sure wish they would teach those law students how to write a bill.
WS
justthefacts, I am just as concerned about education and animal cruelty. It is not exactly an either/or situation.
P.S. I called too. Didn’t get an answer in Jackson and no help from the other number. But maybe there were rude because we called him Ed when his name is Greg? haha.
AFOTL: Wash your face in cold water and wake up. No county or district attorney is going to prosecute you for shooting feral dogs or cats on your land, or for gigging frogs, or such. This bill is aimed at the Micheal Vicks of Mississippi. And there are a sizeable number of those.
Sheeeesh.
AFTOL, the bill requires that killing be cruel– it says “cruelly … kill”. Every act in that paragraph is connected with a modifier that requires some sort of scienter, a state of mind to do harm for harm’s sake in some way.
If you tied up one of those stray dogs and then quit watering the dog, you’d have a problem, but I think you know (and wouldn’t disagree with) that. If the dog was still wandering around loose, it’s a different matter, and I think the statute would not encompass that.
justthefacts, I don’t have much confidence in the ability of the Mississippi legislature, but they ought to be able to do this bill and pretty much any other business at hand that’s doable. It’s not that complicated a bill.
People who think “cruelty” is vague when applied to humans, should have the same objection re: animals.
And yet, somehow, we know what’s cruel and what ain’t, when it’s a dog or a cat.
@Ben, Agreed. It’s the Michael Vicks, and even most of them will go unscathed. In parts of the Delta, people can’t even keep dogs in their yards at night because the Michael Vicks pay young teenagers to steal them for bait dogs. I don’t think the response to a threat from an aggressive animal is going to be interpreted as cruelty, but I think the level of cruelty toward animals in this state warrants serious intervention by law enforcement.
I recall realizing there is not much hope for humanity, circa 5th grade, when I saw boys repeatedly throw toads at trees until the toads died, bodies all busted open. This was a regular occurrence during field trips to the park. That is torment, and they should have been seriously punished. As often occurs in those who are cruel to animals, those boys later became the verbal and sometimes physical tormentors of their classmates. So much for those Sunday School lessons about kindness.
Ward is a lost cause if he can’t get behind the societal value of protecting animals from human cruelty. It’s truly disgusting of him to tolerate the dog-fighting, cock-fighting and severe neglect when he’s in the position to do something about it. I’m not bothering to call, and I think it’s pathetic that he won’t deign to accept messages.
Anderson, I thought about the problem with “heinous atrocious and cruel” in the death penalty statute. It’s vagueness, though, was that it did not help guide jury discretion– all murders seemed (for good reason) to meet the test, not through any problem with the words themselves.
This governor and legislature are in the process of shutting down the criminal justice system by failing to restore funding to the District Attorneys and their assistants. I love dogs, tolerate cats, and immediately kill all armadillos and possums found on my property though. I humanely, not cruelly, shoot them and cause a quick and merciful death. So, I’m not worried about getting tagged with a felony for two reasons: 1] at this rate there won’t be any DAs to prosecute felons full time in the next few years; and 2] my executions are painless to the critter in question.
Ben, if you think we’re callous on animals, just poll the average Mississippian on insects.
Or reptiles. I have a simple policy: kill on sight from a distance, preferably with a .12 gauge.
i read recently that a couple in los angeles were arrested after the woman threw their dog in a busy street during a fight. animals deserve protection from humans who act more wildly than a tame pup.
Wow! We’ve done it again. Shamed this state, I mean. And we wonder why we’re the bain of jokes for ignorance and redneck jokes? Oh, wait..no, we don’t – we know why.
How hard can it be? Write a COMMON SENSE piece of legislation that is GOOD for the majority (dog or other animal fighters are not human, so, I’m not concerned about them). And then have a REPRESENTATIVE OF THE PEOPLE blatantly and intentionally make sure it doesn’t even come up for a vote! (Rep. Ward – you DO remember that it was the people who put you where you are, and your JOB is supposed to be to REPRESENT THE PEOPLE, right?) Do the people whom you represent WANT you to turn a blind eye and deaf ear to animal cruelty in the State of Mississippi? I think not. Do you not KNOW there is a real problem here? Surely that can’t be true.
We have a first offense felony law against livestock; seriously – if you intentionally harm a farm animal – let’s say you prod a cow with an electric device and it is construed as “cruel”, you can go to jail, and pay a fine. But you can torture a dog or cat, and no one can or will do anything. You can impregnate dogs for pups for bait in dog fighting, and no one intervenes. You can leave pups under a house in the dead of winter until they freeze to death, and no one cares. You can move off and leave dogs that were former pets unattended and not fed or cared for, and no one cares. Well, I know that’s not really true – there are those of us who DO care, but the law is not on our side.
How can legislation to make INTENTIONALLY harming in a cruel way a dog or cat harm farmers? That was Rep. Greg Ward’s argument, was it not?
Failure to even allow this bill today clearly shows no concern for dogs and cats, nor for the feral animals mentioned by others. As a dog rescuer who only recently started rescuing (less than 3years), I can tell you that in a very short time, I have seen the results of unspeakable acts against dogs, in particular, including feral dogs. Feral dogs aren’t evil; they aren’t mean or dangerous by nature; they just don’t have a choice – self-preservation must prevail. It’s the nature of the animal, much like humans.
Nor are pit bulls dangerous until someone makes them dangerous (I’ve helped my share of those, too)
It is nasty, mean, evil demons masquerading as humans who make dogs mean. There is where we need to begin to “fix” the problem – take on these people – make it a felony – and enforce the law.
And then you have police in certain areas who KNOW that dog fighting has a very high probability of occurrence in their area, but won’t pursue it because the law doesn’t have enough “teeth” in it – it’s a waste of their limited resources.
I have seen dogs tied to trees for days in the worst heat of summer or early fall without drinkable water or food until I provided it (and there are many of us who have had the same experience many times). We do what we can when the owners don’t refuse to let us help the animal. It is not unusual for the owners to be on premise, but just refuse to care for the animal; and, yet, they won’t let them go. Hmmm..wonder why? Do fighting, stupid!
I’ve rescued a feral dog which was run over, it’s paw partially removed, by someone on a four-wheeler who thought that was “fun”. Of course I intervened. Couldn’t save the dog. Wanted to shoot the person. Couldn’t do that, either, unfortunately. Of course they got away with it, even though I notified the local law enforcement.
If only…if only…if only…we could impart intelligence and compassion by sheer will…..click your heels again, Dorothy…
Rep. Greg Ward – I am at a loss to understand your deliberate refusal to seize an opportunity to bring Mississippi closer to the levels in which the majority of our states find themselves – both willing and able to protect and care for those creatures who are not able to protect and care for themselves. I am also extremely disappointed and saddened by your deliberate choice which again makes us look like “losers”. You shame every Mississippian. I am ashamed of you.
A MISDEMEANOR MEANS NOTHING; LAW ENFORCEMENT WON’T PURSUE IT; PEOPLE WHO ARE LIKELY TO ABUSE ANIMALS WON’T GIVE A FLYING FLIP ABOUT A MISDEMEANOR CHARGE – A LITTLE SLAP ON THE WRIST – AND THEY’RE BACK IN BUSINESS.
MAKE IT MATTER, PEOPLE. MAKE IT A FELONY.
“AFOTL: Wash your face in cold water and wake up. No county or district attorney is going to prosecute you for shooting feral dogs or cats on your land, or for gigging frogs, or such. This bill is aimed at the Micheal Vicks of Mississippi. And there are a sizeable number of those.”
I’m sorry, but I simply don’t share your blind faith in the use of common sense by a prosecutor. There is abuse of overly broad and vague criminal statutes all the time.
If the purpose of this proposed statute is to go after the Michael Vick’s of the world, then simply draft the proposed legislation to say what it is supposed to really mean. Attributes of a good bill would be: brief, concise, to the point, clear, terms well defined, unambiguous, not overly broad, and limited in scope to actual actions intended to be prevented and punished. This bill has none of these attributes.
And NMC, while I do respect your opinion, I simply disagree with your interpretation of the statute. I think you are interpreting it the way that it should read, as opposed to what it actually says.
I just don’t trust the animal rights nutts of the world. I love dogs and cats, and want to do all we can to help them and stop their true abuse. But, this proposed bill goes way too far —way beyond cats and dogs — and could provide the basis for a lot of mischief. There are other agendas afoot here. The bait and switch attempt gives it away — call it a dog and cat bill, and then include all “vertebrate creatures” (except humans and fish). Lord have mercy. Wise up folks.
So … who’s the other guy … the one in bad need of a good haircut?
It’s Ed Ward, Ben (of course!)
Click on the photo– it takes you to the Wikipedia entry for Ed Ward, the music critic (who occasionally appears on the NPR radio show “Fresh Air”) as opposed to Ed Ward, the hockey player.
This is absurd. Misdemeanor punishment is more than sufficient for animal cruelty. Elevating it to felony status, IMO, actually cheapens human life. Who is actually behind this bill, and what is their agenda? I hope the poultry industry brings its full weight against the bill and buries it underneath a mountain of offal.
Observer, I think the human society is in part behind it, and I’ve seen animal abuse I think the needs felony punishment. People who fight dogs and do cockfighting (the dog fighting folks in particular) are going to a higher level of misconduct than misdemeanor misconduct, in my opinion.
I’ve had some small not direct contact with people in rural areas around here where dogs that look the least bit pit-bullish (boxers, etc) are being kidnapped for fighting. The ones who won’t show agression are treated very badly. And the dog fights themselves are repulsive.
There have been sick and repulsive treatment involving puppy mills and the like too, brought to light by the humane societies.
I think there’s room for a fair debate about whether law enforcement resources should be put on this problem. I have no doubt that there’s a difference that rises to the level of felony charges between someone who grossly and recklessly neglect an animal (e.g. leaves an animal on a chain to starve) and someone like I’ve just described.
I’d just offer that “common sense by a prosecutor” appears to be an oxymoron. Considering they are elected and all. And could be family. Or constituents. Or donors. Or just damn fools wanting to make a name for themselves.
P.S. I’m an animal lover. But I hesitate to leave it to “common sense” to sort it all out. Common it ain’t. Not here or anywhere else.
Luke Woodham: “we sprayed fluid down her throat. Her neck caught on fire inside and out. It was true beauty.”
That was just a misdemeanor. Burn down a house, its arson and a felony, burn an animal to a crisp on purpose, slap on the wrist.
AFOTL: Read the damn bill.
Section 2 says you have to kill “with malice”. Living in the country where wild dogs roam and killing them to keep them from harming your family and livestock isn’t malicious. Also says it has to be a DOMESTICATED dog or cat. That means NOT WILD.
Also says you can kill or cage if you fear physical or economic injury.
What does this mean, if you live out in the country like my brother does and have to worry about wild dogs on the loose, the law allows you to kill them.
Kingfish, those are good points. You and I only differ in this respect — I think the bill should be much clearer on the points you stated (the degree of scienter necessary to trigger the felony charge)than you do. Why does such a bill have to go forward in its exact current form? I said above that Section 2 of the bill —the part actually dealing with dogs and cats — is close to being something that most could support with a little more work.
My biggest problems with the bill, which I thought (perhaps mistakenly) were pretty evident, are with Section 1, which you have failed to address or attempt to defend. And Section 1 applies to ALL “vertebrate creatures” (except humans and fish) —including any type of dog or cat, feral or not. So, perhaps you should read the bill too. And then riddle me this. Why is Section 1 of the bill necessary in order to protect domestic dogs and cats, if that is really what this bill is all about? And why does the exclusionary language of the bill only exempt euthanasia by a veterinarian? Such suggests that any other type of euthanasia would not be excluded.
Honestly, I had been so busy lately I had not had time to review this proposed bill myself until NMC posted it up in this thread. All I had heard about it was from the newspaper and radio talk shows. And based upon those sources, I was under the mistaken impression that this was not one of those typical, overly broad, animal protection type of bills that has been championed by the extreme animal rights groups all over the country. It sounded to me like they were just talking about domestic dog and cat abuse, which most all of us are in favor of preventing. When I read the bill here I quickly realized that it was a type of bait and switch —talk about dogs and cats, but include almost the entire animal kingdom. I felt duped. And before reading this bill, I had just about reached the point of calling a legislator or two myself. Glad NMC posted this and I had a chance to read and study over it. Always read the find print —-its always good advice.
Seems the debate is whether animinal cruelty is a misdemenor or a felony.
Are not most distinctions based on value or measurement:
Write a bad check for $149.99 and it is a misdemenor charge; $150.00-felony.
Hold 30 grams of weed-felony; hold over 30 grams-felony.
Would seem that if the law were written with a connection to committing another crime or a profit motive, a potential jury would have better guidance and law enforcemtn and prosecutors would not have to make judgement calls..i.e. gambling on dog fights, puppy mills, First Monday, etc..
If you ever visited a chicken plant or beef processor you have witnessed cruelty to animals. Intent and motive are very hard to measure.
WS
p.s. As far as toad torture it seems that children that torture animals have very serious problems later in life.
So tell us more about Ed Ward, NMC. After you maligned him with the photo switch, it’s the least you can do. Is that a gold chain holding those specs around his neck? Is the wine glass empty because he’s not being served, or did he down it in a single gulp. Come on, Daddy. You can’t just leave us hanging with a gaff of these proporations and not supply more on the poor victim than you’ve given so far. And if it’s not too much trouble: is there an explanation for how Ed’s photo got into this piece? I get kind of shivery thinking an error of similar proportion could result in my mug on one of these posts, maybe about clobbering some fellow in a neck brace on a soccer field…
Wait a second.
Did me and bellsouth agree on something?