Friday, August 23, 2013

Animal Cops Now the Real Cops in New York City

On Patrol
An important development that will have significant impact upon animals (and humans) in New York City.
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The ASPCA is relinquishing its powers of human law enforcement to the New York Police Department (NYPD):
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I was interviewed for the above New York Times piece. Though quoted correctly, much of what I shared with reporter was left out.
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Where there is animal crime, there often is human abuse and that's one of the prime reasons why animal cruelty incidents are important to go to the cops. Both, for their own reasons and those beyond.
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Addressing animal cruelty issues early can and will serve as preventative of potential crimes against humans.
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According to the FBI, animal cruelty is one of the major three red flags indicating present or future violence towards people. Those engaged in dog fighting for example, are usually also involved in gangs, drugs, guns and other violence in the neighborhood. Dog fighting is big in NYC and far beyond the scope of the ASPCA to effectively deal with.
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Cops are already involved with animal issues in NYC and usually bring in stray and abandoned animals to Animal Care and Control.  
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Moreover, police are able to respond much more quickly to an animal abuse or cruelty incident than is the ASPCA that has limited staff.  -- Not to mention that it would be far more intimidating to animal abusers to have the NYPD show up to location of alleged abuse, than an animal protective organization. NYPD carries far more weight in terms of being taken seriously.
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This would seem to elevate in the public mind, the gravity and consequences of animal cruelty and the status of animals in general.
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One can argue that cops already have too much on their plates and may shrug off animal cruelty complaints. But, perhaps if people weren't calling 911 for nonsense such as drunken arguments, loud parties or when their cable goes down, police would actually be able to do their jobs.
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The fact is that the ASPCA lacks staff to actually investigate most of the animal cruelty calls it gets.
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For more information on this important development, please read the column below which goes into greater detail and actual statistics:
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It is a good day for the animals in New York City when the abuses or neglect that befall them is finally directed towards the proper and expedient forces of the New York City Police Department.
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Its a job for Ray Kelly, not Sarah Mclachlin or Robertta Flack. -- PCA
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