Johnson is a repeat offender, and the jury rejected his false claim that he was simply a dog breeder. Possession of animals for fighting purposes is a felony under both state and federal law.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Animal Wellness Action today applauded the federal jury’s guilty verdict in the case of former NFL player LeShon Johnson, who was convicted on six counts related to possession of dogs for fighting. State and federal laws against animal fighting make possession of fighting animals a felony – the rightful equivalent of catching the perpetrator in the act of staging a fight.
“We need to see more cases made against people possessing animals for fighting,” said Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action. “The law treats fighting and possession of fighting animals in the same way, and it’s time for police and prosecutors to more actively enforce that provision of law, as they have in the LeShon Johnson case.”
“It’s very hard to catch lawless people staging a fight, but many dogfighters and cockfighters openly house fighting animals,” added Pacelle. “Once law enforcement learns about their training techniques and their sale of animals to others involved in this grotesque form of cruelty, prosecutors can clinch the case for illegal possession of fighting animals and take a major bite out of these criminal animal fighting networks.”
LeShon Johnson, a former NFL running back and a resident of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, was found guilty of six federal charges related to a dogfighting operation that prosecutors said he was running.
A jury returned the guilty verdicts Friday after nearly two days of deliberations in U.S. District Court in Muskogee. Federal prosecutors introduced a myriad of evidence linking Johnson to conducting a dogfighting enterprise.
LeShon Johnson was found guilty of organizing and participating in a dogfighting ring that inflicted suffering and death on countless animals. The conviction sends a clear message that the days of turning a blind eye to these barbaric activities are over. Sentencing is pending.
In the wake of the Johnson conviction, Animal Wellness Action is urging federal and state authorities to also turn their attention to the widespread and largely unchecked world of organized cockfighting. While fighting events are illegal in all 50 states and under federal law, many cockfighters continue to operate brazenly, often in rural areas, raising birds bred and trained solely for combat.
“It’s time for prosecutors to bring cases not just against those caught in the act of fighting birds, but also those who possess gamefowl bred for no other purpose than illegal fighting,” saidKevin Chambers, Oklahoma state director of Animal Wellness Action. “The law is clear: If you possess animals for use in a fighting venture, that’s a crime — period.”
Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy are leading the national effort to urge Congress to pass the Fighting Inhumane Gambling and High-Risk Trafficking Act, H.R. 3946 and S. 1454. These bills enhance law enforcement’s ability to root out dogfighting and cockfighting operations and halt trafficking of the animals. The legislation is endorsed by nearly 900 agencies and organizations, including the National Sheriffs’ Association, National District Attorneys’ Association, United Egg Producers, and the Small and Rural Law Enforcement Association.
A fact sheet on the FIGHT Act is available here.