17/04/2024
n an unusual legal move, a Georgia prosecutor has listed more than 60 dogs as defendants in a new forfeiture case. This action was spearheaded by Peter D. Leary, the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia, who was appointed by President Joe Biden. Filed on Tuesday, the case involves 67 "pit bull-type dogs" allegedly connected to a dogfighting operation in Mitchell County, Georgia.
The case began with an animal cruelty complaint made to the Mitchell County Sheriff's Office about a property in Sale City on February 21. The next day, authorities performed a wellness check at the location and discovered a significant number of pit bull-type dogs chained up in the woods. Following the discovery, a court approved a warrant allowing investigators to seize the dogs. The seizure was executed swiftly by agents the following day.
Leary’s office has now initiated a civil lawsuit aiming to forfeit the dogs, including any offspring they may have produced either before or after the seizure. This legal action is grounded in the Animal Welfare Act, which has been used as the basis for the forfeiture. Interestingly, the lawsuit does not list any individuals as defendants—only the dogs themselves are named.
Requests for comments on the case were sent by Newsweek to both Leary's office and the Mitchell County Sheriff's Office, highlighting the peculiar nature of this legal approach in handling cases tied to animal cruelty and dogfighting.
