But despite being banned in all 50 states and the momentum generated by the Vick case, the ancient blood sport is thriving in the underground, with hundreds of thousands of dollars at stake on big matches, police detectives and prosecutors said.
State laws still require no minimum mandatory jail time, so while arrests and convictions can be disruptive to dogfighting rings for a short while, the practice continues to flourish.
"Unfortunately, in our courts today, animal welfare is not given the attention and seriousness that it deserves," said Cyrus Zomorodian, the Jacksonville-based animal cruelty prosecutor who tried Coleman's case. "We constantly fight for more court time, resources and attention."
"The criminal organization (in Milwaukee) was making more money from the dogfighting part of gang activities than from the drug trafficking part," Wick said.
Still, when there are arrests, prosecutors are often hamstrung by outdated laws once a case gets to the courts.
In Florida, where dogfighting arrests are routine, there is no minimum mandatory sentence for conviction. The state's animal welfare law was written to protect livestock, so prison time is mandatory for the felony abuse of a horse or a cow, but not a dog.
all of this information is taken from an article by Jason Dearen (Dogfighting thrives in years since Vick case)
