Protesting “Slap on the Wrist” for Drunken Menace who Shot Greenwood Dog

CONTACT: Doll Stanley, doll@idausa.org, (662) 809-4483

IMAGES: http://bit.ly/idaLuke

Greenwood, MS (July 7, 2016) –  In Defense of Animals, the international animal protection organization that runs the Justice for Animals Campaign in Mississippi, is joining forces with Mississippi animal advocates for a candlelight vigil today from 7:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at the Leflore Circuit Court in Greenwood, Mississippi following the ‘miserably inadequate’ sentencing of a drunken menace who shot a dog in the face with a shotgun.

Eddie Gene Mathews of Greenwood Mississippi was given a fine of just $500 and suspended six-month sentence after pleading guilty to intentional animal cruelty. He was arrested on June 16^th after walking down the road, intoxicated, to a neighborhood residence and shooting Malamute-Husky dog, Luke on the right side of his face, wounding, but not killing him.

“This danger to the community has been given a slap on the wrist, and it is totally unacceptable,” said Doll Stanley, Director of In Defense of Animals’ Justice for Animals Campaign. “Miserably inadequate sentences like these do nothing to protect Mississippians and highlight the urgent need for stronger animal protection laws.”

The incident was witnessed and reported to the Leflore County Sheriff’s Department by a neighbor whose children often play with Luke. The neighbor met the Harris family with the news when they returned home from visiting a relative.

Neighbors told In Defense of Animals’ Justice for Animals Campaign Director Doll Stanley that Mathews concerns the neighborhood by frequently shooting behind his residence, an issue the organization plans on taking up with the Leflore County Board of Supervisors as the neighborhood is densely populated.

Doll Stanley organized the vigil to expose Mississippi’s inept statutes and empower the public to take action. She said, “In the wake of another avoidable escape from justice, we stand here united to call for stronger laws in Mississippi. This nearly lethal incident has outraged and disgusted law abiding Mississippians. Lawmakers must stem the flow of hideous crimes against animals which devastate Mississippi communities. Crimes like these and the lax sentencing administered under current Mississippi State Statutes are a perversion of our legal responsibility to protect and care for our animal companions.”

The current punishment for a first offense of animal cruelty is only classed as a misdemeanor. In Defense of Animals is working to see a first offense felony bill passed in 2017 after a similar bill was “killed” in the 2016 legislative session when the Mississippi Farm Bureau took direct aim at it.

“We call on Mississippians holding Farm Bureau insurance policies to protest the Bureau’s inexcusable actions to allow sociopath animal abusers to escape proper justice,” added Stanley.

In Defense of Animals’ Justice for Animals Campaign is working tirelessly to advance the cause for justice and show state legislators that the people of Mississippi are united against senseless and horrific animal abuse. Campaign members are aligning with Mississippi judges, prosecuting attorneys, law enforcement officials, legislators, animal advocates and concerned citizens to pass meaningful regional ordinances that will protect animals when state statutes fail. In Defense of Animals has served in Mississippi for 24 years, aiding victims and law enforcement with hundreds of cruelty reports.

For more information, please visit www.idausa.org

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In Defense of Animals’ Justice for Animals Campaign is actively working with officials in communities, building a groundswell of support for establishing and amending city and county ordinances as part of its campaign to show state lawmakers that Mississippians will not tolerate animal cruelty.

In Defense of Animals is an international animal protection organization located in San Rafael, Calif. dedicated to protecting animals’ rights, welfare, and habitats through education, outreach, and our hands-on rescue facilities in India, Africa, and rural Mississippi.