Repeated Violations of U.S. Laws Prompt Group to Seek Criminal Charges Filed Against Unlicensed Owner of Big Cat Encounters
For Immediate Release:
August 2, 2011
Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382
Pahrump, Nev. — PETA has sent an urgent letter to Paul Chang, assistant regional director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) Office of Law Enforcement, urging the agency to immediately seize lions and tigers held by animal exhibitor Karl Mitchell, owner and operator of Pahrump, Nev.–based Big Cat Encounters. PETA wants the animals moved to a sanctuary for their safety and well-being. In the letter, PETA points out that it has evidence that Mitchell has been transporting tigers across state lines in apparent violation of the Lacey Act, which prohibits transporting lions, tigers, and certain other animals in interstate commerce. Mitchell—who is not licensed to exhibit wildlife—is believed to have transported a tiger across state lines into California on June 28, and it appears from his own website that he has done so many times before.
"Karl Mitchell has shown contempt for the welfare of the animals in his possession and for the laws designed to protect them," says PETA Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement Delcianna Winders. "The only way to ensure that Mitchell doesn't continue to operate outside the law is to seize the lions and tigers he has and to shut down this seedy operation once and for all."
PETA has sent a separate complaint to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which issues licenses to animal exhibitors. In that letter, PETA reminds the agency that its own judicial officers have issued Mitchell three cease-and-desist orders ordering him to stop violating the Animal Welfare Act (AWA). Mitchell has been found in repeated violation of numerous AWA provisions, including exhibiting without a license, failing to handle animals so as to minimize the risk of harm to the animal and the public, and willfully refusing USDA officials access for inspections. When Mitchell was last found in violation of the AWA and assessed a penalty, the USDA judicial officer recommended that Mitchell be criminally prosecuted for knowing violating any provision of the AWA in the future, which Mitchell has apparently now done.
PETA's complaints to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the USDA are available upon request. For more information, please visit PETA.org.