Animal Fighting Magazine to be Pulled from Amazon.com in Response to Humane Society Lawsuit

May 20, 2008

Agreement Comes After Supreme Court Rejects Claim that First Amendment Gives Right to Peddle Child Pornography

WASHINGTON — Today, The Humane Society of the United States announced a partial settlement of its federal lawsuit challenging the sale of criminal animal fighting magazines on Amazon.com in violation of the Federal Animal Welfare Act.

The agreement — entered into between The HSUS and the publishers of "The Gamecock" magazine — was reached immediately after the Supreme Court announced its decision in U.S. v. Williams upholding a federal law banning the promotion of child pornography.

The settlement calls for major format changes to the magazine, including the elimination of all advertisements for fighting animals, knives and other illegal paraphernalia. The magazine will also be pulled from Amazon.com and cannot return until "The Gamecock" demonstrates compliance with federal law for at least one year.

Amazon.com has vowed to fight on in the case, arguing it has a constitutional right to advertise and sell illegal animal fighting paraphernalia — a bizarre position that the publishers of "The Gamecock" magazine have now decided not to press in court, and which the Supreme Court unequivocally rejected in Williams by a 7-2 vote.

"Amazon cannot seem to grasp that the First Amendment does not offer any defense for people who want to peddle contraband," said Jonathan Lovvorn, vice president of animal protection litigation for The HSUS. "Neither child pornographers nor dogfighters or cockfighters may use the First Amendment to protect their schemes to advertise and sell product that further these criminal and demonstrably harmful practices."

The suit, which was filed in 2007, alleges that Amazon.com's sale of two cockfighting trade publications, "The Feathered Warrior" and "The Gamecock," violates the Animal Welfare Act's prohibition on the mailing or other use of interstate commerce to advertise or sell fighting dogs, fighting birds, and animal fighting paraphernalia. The suit also names the publishers of the two magazines as defendants, as well as an intermediary distributor of the publications.

The Farm Bill, recently approved by the House and Senate and awaiting the President's signature or a veto override, furthers strengthens the federal animal fighting law to crack down on animal fighting and the sale of the accoutrements of the fighting industries.

The HSUS is represented in the case by the Washington, D.C. law firm of Ross, Dixon & Bell, LLP, which is providing pro bono legal services, and lawyers with The HSUS's animal protection litigation section.

To view the settlement agreement, please click here.

Facts:

• A review of 11 issues of "The Gamecock" and "The Feathered Warrior" found that more than 90 percent of the magazines' advertisements contain solicitations to commit a crime.
• Dogfighting is illegal in all 50 states. Cockfighting has been banned in all 50 states. Louisiana was the last state to pass legislation against cockfighting, and their ban comes into effect this August.
• The Animal Welfare Act prohibits the use of the U.S. mail to promote animal fighting.
• The First Amendment does not protect speech that proposes unlawful commercial transactions. Many legal experts agree there is no First Amendment protection for the sale of animal fighting magazines.
• Amazon.com has stopped selling other materials for a number of reasons, including images that would simply offend or disturb customers. For a list of items voluntarily removed by Amazon.com — including many items that do not violate federal law — go to humanesociety.org/amazon. 

Timeline:

• May 14 and 15, 2008 – the U.S. House and Senate pass the Farm Bill with provisions to significantly strengthen federal animal fighting law.
• March 14, 2008 – Virginia passes a law to make cockfighting a felony crime, brining the number of felony states to 37.
• Oct. 15, 2007 – San Diego law enforcement authorities confiscate copies of the cockfighting magazines that are sold on Amazon.com during the largest cockfighting raid in U.S. history; more than 5,000 fighting birds were seized.
• July 10, 2007 – The HSUS files suit against the U.S. Postal Service for issuing a ruling permitting the continued mailing of advertisements for fighting animals, in contravention of the federal Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act of 2007.
• July 4, 2007 – Law enforcement authorities confiscate copies of the cockfighting magazines that are sold on Amazon.com during a cockfighting raid in Sacramento, Calif.
• June, 2007 – Louisiana becomes final state to enact a ban on cockfighting.
• May 19, 2007 – Federal and state law enforcement officers arrest 80 people at cockfighting raid in Van Buren, Ark., including a regular advertiser in "The Gamecock" who was selling illegal cockfighting paraphernalia at a pit-side concessions booth — the same materials he advertises every month in "The Gamecock" magazine.
• May 3, 2007 – President Bush signs the federal Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act of 2007, which makes it a felony to use "any interstate instrumentality for commercial speech for purposes of promoting or in any other manner furthering an animal fighting venture."  The law also makes it a felony to buy or sell cockfighting weapons such as gaffs and knives, which are widely advertised in the publications.
• March 13, 2007 – New Mexico becomes the 49th state to criminalize cockfighting statewide.
• Feb. 8, 2007 – The HSUS sues Amazon.com and several publishers and distributors for selling materials that depict and promote cruel dogfighting and cockfighting events in violation of federal and state laws.
• Feb. 3, 2007 – HSUS investigators visit an illegal cockfighting pit in Kentucky and document a massive cockfighting enterprise. The derby drew 400 people and involved as many as 500 fighting birds. A half-million dollar per week illegal gambling enterprise was housed on the site, which was advertised for sale in "The Gamecock."
• July 2006 – The HSUS notifies Amazon.com of its intent to file a lawsuit against the company for its sales of illegal animal fighting materials.
• July 2005 – The HSUS writes to Amazon.com President and CEO Jeffrey Bezos asking him to stop selling "The Feathered Warrior" and "The Gamecock."

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The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization — backed by 10.5 million Americans, or one of every 30. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty — On the web at humanesociety.org.