This petition is being circulated in memory of Deuce, the little min pin who was beaten and strangled to death in broad daylight on the streets of Wilmington; of Kelsey, the beautiful golden retriever murdered in her own back yard; and of Bossman, the boxer, beaten with a pick axe and buried alive by his "owner". All three victims of senseless killing occurring in Delaware in the last month.
Dear State of Delaware Legislators:
We citizens of the State of Delaware believe the current misdemeanor classification and lenient felony sentencing guidelines for offenses against animals are insufficient and not in proportion to the nature of the offenses. We believe that we can and should once again be The First State and send a clear and convincing message to animal abusers that their crimes will not be tolerated by our community. Therefore, by this petition we are demanding that you, our elected officials, take the necessary steps to re-classify the following acts as Class C Felony offenses and impose a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 5 years per count:
1) The physical abuse of any animal;
2) Direct and in-direct participation in dog fighting and/or cock fighting (including participating as a spectator at a dog or cock fight);
3) Possession of dog fighting and/or cock fighting equipment and paraphernalia;
4) Any and all forms of animal torture (including, but not limited to, beating, drowning, hanging, mutilating, setting on fire, starving, depriving of water, kicking, cutting, burning, dragging from a vehicle).
We further demand that you provide the necessary funding in the State budget to allow our state police agencies, SPCA investigators, and Attorney Generals office to investigate, arrest and prosecute these offenders. The signers of this petition are all voters and we intend to hold each of you accountable on election day should you fail to act on the heinous nature of these crimes that are occurring with more and more frequency in our State. We demand action and we demand it today.
Sincerely,
