PETA Employee Arraigned On Felony Dog-Napping Theft Charge

According to a press release issued by The Center for Consumer Freedom, a hunting dog snatched by a People For The Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) employee may have been slated for death at PETA's Norfolk headquarters.

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From the press release:

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) employee Andrea Florence Benoit will be arraigned today in Southampton County (VA) Circuit Court on a felony charge of stealing a local Animal Control officer's hunting dog. The nonprofit Center for Consumer Freedom, which tracks PETA's program of killing adoptable dogs and cats at PETAkillsAnimals.com, is calling on the animal rights group to stop playing God with other people's pets. Benoit was indicted by a Grand Jury on July 16.

Benoit was arrested in October 2006, shortly after allegedly abducting a free-roaming Walker hound. Police stopped her PETA-owned van as she attempted to transport the dog to PETA's Norfolk office. During a preliminary hearing on June 27, police testified that Benoit initially lied about having taken the animal. But after the owner described it in detail, she changed her tune, saying "Oh … that dog. It’s in the back."

The dog's owner also testified that when the dog was taken, it was wearing an identification collar bearing his name and cell phone number. The dog's coat was also marked with an identifying number and the owner's initials. On June 27, Benoit's attorney stated that the dog was perfectly healthy when Benoit took it, and that she and an alleged accomplice "did what was, quite frankly, consistent with their training" at PETA.

"It's no secret that PETA doesn't like hunters, but the group has no business stealing their dogs," Center for Consumer Freedom Director of Research David Martosko said today. "Judging from PETA’s 80 percent kill rate, it's likely this animal was headed for the death-chamber at PETA's Norfolk headquarters when police intervened. This is the kind of behavior PETA would be condemning if its own employees weren't responsible for it."

Commentary By Larry S. Moore:
Buckeye recently highlighted the Humane Society of the United States
(HSUS) as perhaps the original wolf in sheep's clothing. This story
presents the view of the extremist People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals (PETA). While HSUS may be the original, it is PETA and their
supporters that are willing to bare their teeth and put the bite on a
huge range of lawful animal and pet owners. Of course the group most
often in the crosshairs of PETA are hunters and trappers.

The story notes a "free roaming Walker hound" was the target. Fortunately for the dog, and perhaps unfortunately for the PETA types,
it is owned by an Animal Control Officer. Walker hounds are commonly
used in Ohio for coon hunting. Any hound (whether basset, beagle,
Walker, black and tan, Plott, etc) tends to be a free-roaming dog when
hunting. They range to find the scent of game, track game and run that
game until the raccoon trees or the rabbit circles to where the hunters
have an opportunity to bag it. It is the nature of the dog to stay on
that track. Without that trait, the dogs would not be beneficial to
hunters.

Responsible hunting dog owners, like this officer, have ID tags on their
dog's collars. Of course, PETA in pushing their radical anti-hunting
agenda, doesn't care about ID tags, ethics for hunters and dogs, or even
the law. These types of actions and much worse with attacks on animal
research facilities, medical research facilities and others, have led
the U.S. government to declare at least two groups which PETA funds as domestic terrorist organizations.

Hunters, especially those using dogs, should always be
aware and on the lookout for PETA and anti-hunting activists as we head
afield this fall. Ohio does have hunter harassment laws, and any
suspected activity should be immediately reported to local law
enforcement and the Division of Wildlife.

Thankfully, the CHL holder will have the ability to carry a handgun for
personal protection. Let's hope Ohio does not see this type of
anti-hunting activity. If we do, the CHL holder should keep a cool head
and not become involved in a verbal argument with any anti-hunters.
This only plays into their plans and hands.

Let's all look forward to a great and safe hunting season in Ohio.