Man Jailed for Feeding Stray Cats

[mrbill]

GAINESVILLE, TX—Alley Cat Allies is offering support and legal assistance to a 76-year-old Gainesville man who is presently in jail for caring for and feeding cats.

“This is a truly disheartening miscarriage of justice,” says Becky Robinson, president and founder of Alley Cat Allies. “Compassion should not be criminalized, but that is exactly what this man was arrested for—simply providing food for cats. We are proud to offer any assistance to this gentleman who provides a service to the cats and Gainesville.”

Alley Cat Allies is now working to repeal the local feeding ban, so that no one in Gainesville who feeds cats will have to fear legal action, fines, or jail time.

Robinson added that Alley Cat Allies is committed to changing Gainesville’s ordinances to allow people not only to feed cats, but also the freedom to start a Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program in the city.

“What Gainesville needs is a Trap-Neuter-Return program that will provide neutering and vaccination for the city’s community cats,” says Robinson. “Locking up innocent people for being compassionate to cats doesn’t help anyone. It’s counterproductive and does nothing to help decrease the community cat population. Only Trap-Neuter-Return can do that.”

In a TNR program, community cats—also called feral cats—are humanely trapped and taken to a veterinary clinic for spaying, neutering, and vaccination. The tip of the cat’s left ear is painlessly removed while under anesthesia, indicating that the cat has been neutered and vaccinated. Unsocialized cats are returned to their outdoor homes, while friendly cats and kittens are fostered before adoption. TNR works. By ending the reproduction cycle, and stopping behaviors associated with mating such as yowling and spraying, community concerns are addressed and calls to animal control greatly decline.

Alley Cat Allies has helped communities across the country adopt lifesaving programs for cats like Trap-Neuter-Return. Trap-Neuter-Return is an established, mainstream program that provides care for community cats and keeps them out of shelters. In addition to the over 600 nonprofit groups nationally practicing TNR, there are more than 450 cities and counties with official ordinances or policies endorsing TNR for community cats.

Individuals can learn more about Trap-Neuter-Return at www.alleycat.org/casefortnr

[longship]

1. TNR sounds like it would be an effective program.

R&K

[enlightenment]

5. TNR is an amazingly effective program

Humane and responsible.

https://www.aspca.org/adopt/feral-cats-faq

In my city, the TNR program took about 5000 feral/stray cats out of the breeding cycle last year - spayed or neuter, vaccinated, released back. Given that the estimated number of ferals in the city is around 200,000, that's a small but healthy percentage. There is also an active 'colony caretaker' program that helps ensure that these non-breeding clowders are fed and protected.

[shenmue]

2. Not squee!

That was very Not Cool of them.

[Downwinder]

3. Texas goes Florida one better.

A law against feeding homeless cats.

[jwirr]

4. For those who are trying to set up neuter programs our program is a very good example. First of

all if you go to a shelter to get a pet you are asked to pay for neutering that pet. But even better is the group of vets who set up office to neuter animals for about $20 for anyone with an EBT card because the animal shelter, the city and one of the areas largest pet stores along with donations pays for the cost of the procedure. The $20 also pays for a rabies shot.

Persons with an EBT card can have up to 3 animals a year neutered.

[joeybee12]

6. Unfortunately this is more common than people realize...

Lots of cities and towns have such ordinances...Vegas had one until about 6-1/2 years ago...I ignored it, as did a lot of other people.

[mrbill]

14. Gainesville Code, Sec 3-14 - Animal Nuisance

(7) To place or make convenient food or containers of food on any property or city street in the City of Gainesville for the purpose of feeding stray animals.

[joeybee12]

15. I'd like to know who the phucker was who wrote that...

Then again, it shouldn't surprise me since feeding the homeless is a crime in lots of places.

[mrbill]

7. a bit more info ......

GAINESVILLE (CBSDFW.COM) - A Gainesville man chooses jail over paying fines he considers unjust. David Parton just finished spending nine days in the Cooke County Correctional Center rather than pay $900 in fines for illegally feeding stray cats in Gainesville.

“God told me to keep feeding them and leave the consequences to Him,” Parton told CBS 11 News. He claims he’s been called to feed Gainesville’s stray cats for nearly a decade. But the clandestine feedings have earned him citation after city citation, and finally 900-dollars in fines. Which he refused to pay.

“Oh, no, if I had a million dollars I wouldn’t have paid it Hell, no. No!” he exclaimed.

“And I told them I’d sit it out in jail. I did, that’s why I went to jail, I wouldn’t pay the fine. That law is not right.” But while he was in… some of the cats’ hidey-holes were boarded up. Parton tells CBS 11 News he was feeding nine cats at one of his five locations before he went to jail, but that was nine days without them being fed. He says there are none here now, and he fears the worst.

[Retrograde]

8. He wasn't just feediing the stray cats

If his neighborhood is anything like mine (moderately dense northern Silicon Valley established neighborhood) he's also feeding raccoons, skunks, and roof rats, not to mention the ubiquitous squirrels. Trap-Neuter-Return is a first step in reducing the population in the first place.

[840high]

9. My area is not dense and I feed

stray cats and possums.

[pnwmom]

11. How do you know he wasn't tossing food directly to cats?

That's what an elderly lady I knew did. The cats would come around to her backyard every morning, and she'd toss some food to them. It wasn't going to raccoons, skunks, or rats.

I think every town should have a trap and return program. But I didn't blame the lady for worrying about the cats.

[joeybee12]

16. He might be, but then again, he might be feeding and then

picking it up, not leaving the food out but feeding at a specific time.

[n2doc]

10. Another version

GAINESVILLE (CBSDFW.COM) - A Gainesville man chooses jail over paying fines he considers unjust. David Parton just finished spending nine days in the Cooke County Correctional Center rather than pay $900 in fines for illegally feeding stray cats in Gainesville.
“God told me to keep feeding them and leave the consequences to Him,” Parton told CBS 11 News. He claims he’s been called to feed Gainesville’s stray cats for nearly a decade. But the clandestine feedings have earned him citation after city citation, and finally 900-dollars in fines. Which he refused to pay.
“Oh, no, if I had a million dollars I wouldn’t have paid it Hell, no. No!” he exclaimed.
“And I told them I’d sit it out in jail. I did, that’s why I went to jail, I wouldn’t pay the fine. That law is not right.” But while he was in… some of the cats’ hidey-holes were boarded up. Parton tells CBS 11 News he was feeding nine cats at one of his five locations before he went to jail, but that was nine days without them being fed. He says there are none here now, and he fears the worst.

more
http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2015/02/13/gainesville-man-feeds-stray-cats-goes-to-jail/

[Dr Hobbitstein]

12. Poor Setzer, Rocker, & Phantom.

Who knew they were so hungry?

[Curmudgeoness]

13. And what are you in for?

I am sure that no one would believe that they would bother throwing an old man in jail for feeding cats. I give him credit for ignoring the law and for not paying the fines. Maybe his act of rebellion will change this stupid law.

[tosh]

17. Hooray for Alley Cat Allies!

[MemphisAstrology]

18. Alley Cat Allies

I live in Horn Lake, Mississippi and rescue / foster cats. ALL of mine are spayed and neutered. My neighbor, a sheriff's deputy, took it upon himself to bait traps and catch them. Under the circumstances, I don't think he needs the convenience of MY fence to contain his dogs. If I have to stand over my cats and watch them every second, he should have to watch his dogs, so I removed four boards on MY fence. He replaced them and sent me a bill for $12.07 and then had me arrested for malicious mischief over $1000. I am facing five years in a federal penitentiary.

I tweeted to Alley Cats. You know that moment when someone writes, "send us the information" and you've already sent it four times?

This cat man should sue for malicious prosecution. Compassion shouldn't be a crime.