The authorities have been directed to return 256 of Mr. Kearneys animals to him. (Wonder who has to pay for the transport!) JP Cooper ordered 130 animals forfeited and determined the cost of 2 weeks care of these animals to be $12,000. JP Cooper neatly divided the animals by species forfeiting the chickens and pigeons and ordering return of the rabbits, horses, sheep and other livestock. What a neat, convenient way to make a ruling!
IMO, if the government (along with a humane organization, of course) is going to snatch up animals in which one has a constitutionally protected property right, judges need to be prepared to rule on the condition of each and every single animal. The fact that the majority of animals, in this case the large animals, were returned indicates to me they should ALL have been returned. But make no mistake that judges are acutely aware that ruling entirely against law enforcement puts the authorities at risk of being sued so they're likely to make these kinds of "split the baby" rulings. It's wrong, just plain WRONG.
So, JP Cooper split this baby and determined that Mr. Kearney should pay $12,000 for the care of the chickens and pigeons for 16 days. Of course, this still leaves Earnest Kearney up for criminal charges. Let me guess: pay up or face a criminal trial where he could be jailed, fined, ordered to pay restitution far in excess of the already exorbitant claimed amount? That's just plain obscene if that's the case and I'll lay odds it is.
Pigeons? Cost of caring for pigeons? PLEASE, you toss them some seed and you're basically done. I'm with NYC, these nasty creatures are pests to be contained and eradicated or at least controlled. I can't really imagine why Mr. Kearney had them at all but to each his own. Well, maybe they were nice in the petting zoo environment.
Chickens. Come on, small foul, livestock. I can buy a rotisseried chicken at the store for well under $10 but let's use $10/birds the GOLD standard and pretend the entire 130 birds forfeited are of that GOLD standard. That's 130 X $10, $1,300 total from hatching to market and make a profit standard. $12,000 for 16 days of care? OMGoodness, are you kidding me?
No matter these nasty humane organizations and their "treat all animals as golden pets" standards, I like my chicken dinner and I don't favor anything that is going to make that dinner cost in excess of $100!
2 weeks ago, the media picked up this story and ran like wild with it, splashing Earnest Kearney's name all over the world, smearing him as an animal abuser; now out there in cyberspace forever and ever. Few reported on the initial hearing and today I find 1, ONE, reporter doing a follow up story showing that Mr. Kearney is getting the vast majority of his animals back and only one national source (USAToday) even picking it up as a blurb with a link. I sincerely hope that reporter will go on to demand an accounting from the SPCA of Texas and how they came up with the allegation that they spent $12,000 caring for these livestock birds. Non-profit my keester, SOMEONE is making a profit!!!
To the rest of the media: SHAME, SHAME on you. If you're going to smear people (which you shouldn't), the VERY least you can do is a follow up with the same prominence as the initial smear!
To the friends, family, and community who stood up for and behind Mr. Kearney. THANK YOU and CONGRATULATIONS on a job well done. Please keep it up. We must all stand up for those accused of animal abuse by these over the top humane organizations to at least see that every owner accused of abuse at least gets a fair hearing and, even when convicted, is charged fair and reasonable amounts for the care provided to the animals. The SPCA of Texas had been harassing Mr. Kearney for some 5 years prior to this. They may continue to do so AND they may do the same to others, it could be you!
After being tormented, I can understand why Mr. Kearney sees this as a victory but I certainly hope he will find the wherewithal to fight this out. We all must start doing so. Plea bargaining, not appealing, giving in is like telling thieves they can keep part of the booty; it only encourages them to continue their abhorrent behavior. If we can at least take the easy profit out of it, they'll become more reasonable and rational, the truly outrageous will go away completely; maybe we'll get to keep the rights our forebears wanted us to have.
Of course, the SPCA of Texas is touting this as a win, touting their award of the 130 birds while minimizing the large number of animals they were mandated to return. The birds are not yet available for adoption but they're still asking for your money. Hm, I think I see a BBQ fundraiser in the future with Chicken on the menu!