Kinship Circle | Letter Campaigns

8/18/09: Put Petland Out Of Bunny Business And Jail Killer

SOURCE OF INFORMATION / BACKGROUND

UPDATE - 11/20/09: Puny Punishment For Petland Bunny Killer
SOURCE: Woman sentenced to probation for drowning bunnies

11/20/09, SUMMARY: Kent State University student Liz Carlisle — who received national media and death threats after photographed smiling with two rabbits she'd drowned at a Petland store — was sentenced to 180 days in jail. But Akron Municipal Judge Stephen Fallis suspended jail time. Carlisle was put on six months' probation, ordered to pay $350 in fines and spend 120 hours community service. Fallis said Carlisle explained that she found two injured rabbits who had been fighting. She asked her supervisor what to do. "The supervisor told her to 'baptize them, and made up and down motions' which she believed meant to drown them," Fallis said. "She drowned them in a bucket." Petland officials terminated the owner's franchise agreement...

• Accused rabbit abuser faces protesters, pleads not guilty
• Liz Carlisle will be arraigned Monday on cruelty charges in rabbit drowning case
• Petland Employee Who Drowned Rabbits Should Serve Time if Convicted, Says PETA
• Ask Petland to End Rabbit Sales After Employee Rabbit Killings
• Akron Petland closes and employee faces cruelty charges...

Before its removal from Facebook, the caption under this photo read, "A normal day at Petland." Former Akron, Ohio employee Elizabeth Carlisle is charged with two counts of animal cruelty for drowning two wounded rabbits.

8/18/09 UPDATE: Carlisle pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor animal cruelty charges in Akron Municipal Court. She has a pretrial hearing before Judge Stephen Fallis on Sept. 3, 2009. Accused rabbit abuser faces protesters, pleads not guilty

CONTACT INFORMATION + SAMPLE LETTER

#1. CONTACT INFORMATION / TO PETLAND USA • Print/Send This Letter

Petland USA
Ed Kunzelman, Founder and Chair
Frank Difatta, President
250 Riverside St.; Chillicothe, OH 45601
ph: 740-775-2464, 800-221-5935
fax: 740-775-2575
Petland marketing and communication: elizabeth.kunzelman@petland.com, lacey.clever@petland.com

***KINSHIP CIRCLE CANNOT GUARANTEE ALL EMAILS WILL WORK:During campaigns, recipients may change or disable their email addresses. Emails from government, corporate, or institute websites may be incorrect.

#1. SAMPLE LETTER / TO PETLAND USA • Print/Send This Letter

Dear Mr. Kunzelman and Mr. Diffata,

I understand Petland closed its Akron, Ohio outlet after employee Elizabeth Carlisle bragged about drowning two rabbits on her Facebook page. I implore you to take one more step: Please end rabbit sales at all Petland stores.

As you are aware, Carlisle not only drowned rabbits, but also dangled their dead bodies on either side of her grinning face for an Internet photo. In Facebook comments, Carlisle says she posed for her manager's camera "swearing at [the rabbits] to just hurry up and die…"

Do workers like Carlisle represent Petland's euthanasia policy and overall mission "to make a difference" in the communities it serves? Carlisle claims the rabbits had been "attacking and eating each other." On Facebook she describes wounds such as a missing eye, broken jaw and lower-body paralysis. Where were other employees as these grave injuries occurred over a span of time?

If the rabbits had been responsibly tended to in the first place, this merciless killing might not have happened.

Animal health and safety seem problematic for Petland, despite statements about "the best health care practices [for] the pets in our care." Petland ought to focus exclusively on pet supplies and counseling, while promoting the adoption of homeless animals in cooperation with local rescue groups.

As a minimum effort — considering the negligence and cruelty in these killings — Petland should terminate rabbit sales at all stores. Thank you for your valuable time and consideration.

Sincerely,

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#2. CONTACT INFORMATION / AKRON PROSECUTOR • Print/Send This Letter

Holland & Muirden Attorneys at Law
J. Jeffrey Holland
1343 Sharon-Copley Rd
P.O. Box 345
Sharon Center, Ohio 44274
ph: 330-239-4480, 866-684-7336; fax: 330-239-6224
email: jjholland@hmlawohio.com
SOURCE: www.holland-muirden.com/contact_akron_medina_lawyer.htm

***KINSHIP CIRCLE CANNOT GUARANTEE ALL EMAILS WILL WORK:During campaigns, recipients may change or disable their email addresses. Emails from government, corporate, or institute websites may be incorrect.

#2. SAMPLE LETTER / AKRON PROSECUTOR • Print/Send This Letter

Dear Mr. Holland,

I understand former Petland employee Elizabeth Carlisle faces two counts of animal cruelty after she bragged about drowning two rabbits on her Facebook page.

I respectfully ask for your thorough prosecution in this case, and hope that you'll advocate jail time if Carlisle is convicted. Please also seek to prohibit Carlisle from owning or working with animals. Any animals still in her custody ought to be confiscated now.

Carlisle not only drowned rabbits, but also dangled their dead bodies on either side of her grinning face for an Internet photo. This bizarre behavior warrants mandatory psychological counseling as well. In Facebook comments, Carlisle says she posed for her manager's camera "swearing at [the rabbits] to just hurry up and die…"

Criminologists view the intensity of vicious behavior — regardless of the victim's identity — as a precursor to future violence. Offenders often "practice" on animals before evolving to crimes against humans.

Indeed, documentation of animal abuse via photographs or web comments suggests the perpetrator derives pleasure from violent acts — "a serious indicator that violence will be repeated and/or escalated," says Dr. Randall Lockwood of ASPCA Anti-Cruelty Initiatives and a frequent consultant for cruelty investigators, law enforcers and mental health professionals.

The pet industry typically disregards cruelty in stores. Though complaints are filed about the brutal mistreatment and disposal of sick or "surplus" animals — legal action rarely occurs. Animal care costs are cited as reason to fatally drown, freeze, smash or starve animals.

Please let the pet trade know that animal abuse is not tolerated wherever it takes place. Thank you for your utmost deliberation in this case.

Sincerely,

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