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Didsbury dog abuser to be sentenced today

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Memorial highlights need for stronger animal cruelty legislation

Didsbury, October 17, 2007 – Animal lovers from across Canada will be present – even if only in spirit – outside a Didsbury courthouse this morning to remember Daisy Duke. They also hope to find out what sentence is given to Daniel Charles Haskett, the 19-year-old who earlier this year pleaded guilty to his part in this gruesome case.

The case of Daisy Duke, a lab-border collie cross, horrified Canadians coast to coast last October after Haskett and a 17 year old tied a rope around the dog’s neck, dragged her behind a car and hit her with a shovel before abandoning her, still clinging to life, in the street. The dog had a broken pelvis, skull and spine, and had to be euthanized by a veterinarian at the scene. To make it worse, Daisy Duke belonged to Haskett’s brother.

The young offender has already been sentenced to three months of house arrest, 240 hours of community service and two years probation. Under today’s law, the maximum sentence Haskett could receive is a $2,000 fine and/or six months in jail, and a prohibition on owning animals of no more than 2 years.

“The current law is full of loopholes that allow many offenders to escape prosecution entirely,” says Steve Carroll, CEO of the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies, speaking to the Didsbury gathering. “And even when they don’t, the penalties provided don’t come close to properly addressing the crime.”

Canada’s current animal cruelty law is more than 115 years old. Gaping loopholes in the offences mean that only 1 in 400 animal cruelty inspections leads to a successful Criminal Code prosecution. Before Parliament prorogued last month, there was a bill in the House of Commons called S-213, that contained the same offences, word for word, as the current law. All it did was increase the penalties. The government supported this bill. And while we agree that stronger penalties are absolutely necessary, we also believe that higher penalties will not change the conviction rate. Bill S-213 will make zero difference in reducing animal cruelty.

There’s another bill before Parliament. It’s a private member’s bill proposed by M.P. Mark Holland, that makes some comprehensive changes to the current animal cruelty law that would close some of those big loopholes that exist today – including those changes that 85% of Canadians told us they want to see. The changes in this bill were supported by all political parties and most animal use industry groups in 2003.

“It is sad that it sometimes takes horrific cases like Daisy Duke’s to pull our nation out of total apathy when it comes to animal cruelty,” says Mr. Carroll. “But if we can say that something good will come out of this case, it is that it has opened the eyes of so many Canadians and it has educated them about animal cruelty and the lack of adequate legislation to address it.”

“Now we need the help of caring Canadians to get our politicians to wake up and do the humane thing: Kill Bill S-213.”

About the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies
As the national voice of humane societies and SPCAs, the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies works on national issues on behalf of its member animal welfare organizations across Canada. The CFHS has been the lead national animal welfare organization advocating for changes to the animal cruelty provisions of the Criminal Code since legislation on this issue was first introduced in 1999. We continue to work with our member societies, the public, government and other stakeholders to promote the importance of stronger legislation that will help reduce animal cruelty and community violence in Canada. 30

For more information, please contact:

Tanya O’Callaghan
Communications Director
Canadian Federation of Humane Societies
Tel: 613-224-8072 ext. 12
tanyao@cfhs.ca

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