JOHN GOODWIN
MANAGER, ANIMAL FIGHTING CAMPAIGN
John Goodwin is currently the manager of animal fighting issues for The HSUS' Animal Cruelty and Fighting Campaign. He is a nationally recognized expert on animal fighting issues who has been involved in the passage of both state and federal legislation to curb animal fighting. Additionally, he played a major role in the outlawing of cockfighting in Louisiana and New Mexico, which were the last two states to ban the blood sport. Goodwin's investigative efforts have led to the arrests of hundreds of individuals involved in illegal animal fighting rings.
In 2008, Goodwin was instrumental in the passage of legislation that made dogfighting a felony crime in Idaho and Wyoming, making the blood sport a felony in all 50 states. A Virginia resident, Goodwin worked closely with legislators in the Commonwealth of Virginia to strengthen the commonwealth's animal fighting laws. In March 2008 Virginia went from having one of the nation's weakest animal fighting laws to one of the strongest. Goodwin was profiled in the August 2008 issue of Men's Journal for his efforts to wipe out dogfighting.
In January 2007, Goodwin worked closely with the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office and the Virginia State Police on a raid on the South Hill cockfighting pit in Boydton, Va., where 145 people were arrested. Later that year, Goodwin collaborated in the investigation and raid of a large Ohio dogfighting pit and seven fighting dog kennels based in the Dayton and Cincinnati areas. That investigation culminated in one of the largest and most successful criminal animal fighting crackdowns in U.S. history.
In June 2005, Goodwin assisted the FBI and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations in a raid on what was believed to be the nation's largest illegal cockfighting pit. In late 2004, he assisted law enforcement authorities with the confiscation of 95 dogs from a South Carolina breeding operation that provided animals for hog-dog fights. He also led efforts to stop a Kentucky based cockfighting organization from raising funds through a Toyota dealership that was donating $500 for every truck sold to one of their members.
Goodwin, who has been active in the field of animal protection since 1989, joined The HSUS in 2000 as a staff member in The HSUS's Government Affairs department. In that capacity, he helped to manage campaigns to pass or defeat animal-related ballot initiatives in several southern and western states.
Mr. Goodwin has been quoted in numerous newspapers on animal fighting issues and has appeared in over two-hundred news broadcasts, radio interviews and televised debates regarding animal protection issues. He has been featured in coverage by Fox News, CNN, NPR, Court TV, MSNBC, ESPN, the Associated Press, USA Today, and The New York Times.
