No Fighting Fowl
By Isaiah Montoya
A $77 million federal civil rights lawsuit has been filed against New Mexico Attorney General (AG) Gary King, Assistant Attorney General Steve Suttle, paid employee of Animal Protection of New Mexico, Heather Ferguson, veterinarian Patricia Feeser and others by the New Mexico Game Breeders Association and the Kiowa Association.
Led by NMGBA president Ronald Baron, the suit alleges that the AG's Animal Cruelty Task Force (NMACTF) has knowingly allowed unqualified task force members to participate in law enforcement activities without proper license or jurisdiction at game cock/dog fighting raids throughout the state and into Texas.
New Mexico was the 49th state to outlaw cockfighting, which was enacted when Governor Richardson knew he'd be running for president in late 2007.
Heather Ferguson claims she is the task force coordinator, yet the AG’s record manager Ms. Payne said in a letter to Baron, “Ferguson is not an employee of the AG’s office.”
The lawsuit states over 20 cases in which the defendants were searched, interrogated and their property was seized and/or destroyed including live birds without a court order.
The law, according to the suit, specifies that the arrestees must be participating in an animal fighting event at the time of arrest. The issue is that in the suit, none of the cases had active fights occurring. The defendants claim that mere possession of game fowl is not illegal. The Court of Appeals agrees and holds that the fighting of roosters is the criminal act (a misdemeanor).
The suit, through lead counsel Roger Rodriguez, states that there have been “severe irregularities in the application of the law”. Local counsel Carlos Quinones helped build a case that “private property is being seized from individuals who have never been charged with a crime”.
Additionally, according to the suit, a judge in Otero County charged three defenders with cockfighting despite lack of evidence. “Pleas and motions by the defendants were awarded with a guilty plea for each, indicating clear constitutional violations of the due process clause,” says Baron.
“It is not against the law in NM to have equipment paraphernalia,” argues Baron.
According to 25-year veteran of animal rights activism Marcy Britton, “Since no fighting was occurring, they weren't crime scenes. “
In a state provided document Deputy Attorney General Albert Lama wrote, citing (NMSA 8-5-2), “The New Mexico Attorney General’s jurisdiction is limited. The AG cannot begin a criminal investigation without the formal written request of a District Attorney.”
Britton responds, “There are 13 DA’s in the state and not a single one has ever done so.”
Yet while active, Ferguson, "used the AG's office to orchestrate illegal maneuvers, which may be felony coercion," says Britton. "Local law agencies risked the liability of a civilian at a crime scene, possibly unwittingly."
"The lives of innocent people are being risked," adds Baron.
"A pattern of intentionally impersonating a police officer is conspiracy," says Britton. "She is not a sworn police officer and therefore willfully and intentionally conducted raids and destroyed evidence while impersonating a police officer. Gary King participated in conspiracy."
"The task force members were not supervised by anyone," says Baron. "Illegal search and seizure has been done and also civil rights violations were perpetrated against suspects while under the effective custody of the AG's office."
Feeser has been called the 'state forensic vet' during raids according to affidavits. There is no such position in the state, but there is a state veterinarian that works for the livestock board (not Feeser, who is not a state employee).
“Since the law was passed there have been over 4,000 healthy game fowl, baby chicks, hens, and eggs euthanized by the ACTF,” says Baron. “But why? There is not an expert veterinarian on game fowl for the state of New Mexico.”
Possibly most curious of all is that Heather Ferguson is alleged, by two brothers (Duryea and Daron Scott), to have, “conducted surveillance in El Paso, Texas without a warrant and representing herself as an agent with the NMAG's office and displaying a gun.”
The Scott brothers' collective properties were raided, according to court documents, in Chaparral, NM and El Paso, TX and led by El Paso and Dona Ana law enforcement. The dog fighting case against the Scott's was later dropped due to lack of evidence toward animal fighting.
One of the brothers, Daron Scott, asserts that, "to this day several NM sheriffs personally own some of my confiscated dogs which were ordered to be returned, yet were not."
Although the Scott's charges have been dropped Daron still lost his job as a special-ed teacher at Santa Teresa H.S. in NM. "I was portrayed by the media as a bad person and was soon fired. They said I didn't live up to moral code." The brothers, who are African-American, feel, “racism played a part.”
In a State Police incident report, Mr. Mario Marin, a game fowl owner and raid recipient said he “saw a helicopter flying over his property.” “Later, he was raided by Ferguson and others who delivered threats of federal charges,” says Britton. “Marin took a photo of Ferguson with a firearm on his property with local police knowingly participating. They may have thought any ACTF member had such authority,” she adds. Marin, in the report, said, “The task force destroyed my hens, chicks and eggs.”
One such officer is Max Salas who said in a court affidavit, "Feeser assisted with the search and Ferguson said the remaining roosters located at the property need to be euthanized."
Baron says, “As far as I know; anybody in the state of New Mexico who impersonates a police officer and threatens people is arrested.”
Britton concludes, "The ethical, legal and prosecutorial misconduct on the part of the AG's office in connection to the task force is criminal."
Furthermore, “research indicates that taxpayers are paying for Ferguson's and Feeser’s defense lawyers,” adds Baron. “Sean Olivas of Kelleher and McLeod are handling the case and some payments have already been made by the state, according to state issued evidence.”
Over 1,000 proclaimed victims of similar crimes are part of the lawsuit. Baron adamantly conveys that his camp is not trying to legalize cock fighting but to ensure that the law is not used to criminalize mere possession of game fowl/dogs.
"Immunity to this activity is criminal and people need to be held accountable," says Baron. "The law should not be above the law. This needs to go to court; so we requested a trial where a jury can decide who is right and who is wrong and not an independent judge who is influenced by the state of New Mexico. "
No Fighting Fowl Rebuttal
By John Goodwin
The Human Society of the United States
I’m disappointed in your recent article (“No Fighting Fowl, Aug. 2010) attacking the New Mexico Attorney General’s Animal Cruelty Task Force, as well as one of its members, Heather Ferguson. Having worked alongside Ms. Ferguson and the Task Force for years, I can vouch for their unimpeachable integrity and commitment to ending animal abuse in New Mexico.
Your article bases its criticism of the Task Force on a frivolous lawsuit filed by a group of cockfighters in spring 2009 that was dismissed by federal judge Martha Vasquez many months before your article went to print.
In her ruling, Judge Vazquez wrote, “In short, the complaint is comprised only of conclusory allegations and unsupported conclusions of mixed fact and law.’”
Your article also incorrectly describes New Mexico’s cockfighting laws. The law clearly states that training or preparing a bird to fight is illegal. In each raid on a gamefowl farm where charges have been brought, there was clear evidence that birds were being trained or prepared for fighting. Every case that has gone to trial has ended with a guilty verdict.
Because of its leadership in taking on cockfighting crimes, The New Mexico Animal Cruelty Task Force received a prestigious Humane Law Enforcement Award in 2009.
And in another nod to the Task Force’s professionalism, on Aug. 26 Gov. Bill Richardson announced the receipt of a $150,000 federal grant to further the goals of the Task Force: going after animal fighters and other animal abusers.
The one deficiency in efforts to stop cockfighting in New Mexico is with the law itself. The penalties for cockfighting in New Mexico are weak, and are more than offset by the potential gambling winnings that cockfighters strive for.
The very fact that a group like the “gamefowl breeders association” still exists is testament to that fact that the law is not strong enough to discourage these people from operating in an open and brazen manner.
Your article is a reminder that people who care about animals must be vigilant. Those who engage in despicable crimes like cockfighting are desperate to destroy the reputations of those working to make the world a more compassionate place. We cannot afford to let them succeed.
It is up to the citizens of New Mexico to encourage their legislators to strengthen their cockfighting laws and support the Attorney General’s Animal Cruelty Task Force. Staged animal fighting has no place in a civilized society; it’s time to banish it to the dustbins of history where it belongs.
