CROOKSTON DAILY TIMES (Minnesota) 19 September 06 Teen who burned turtle for the world to see is sentenced
Moorhead, Minn. (AP): An 18-year-old was sentenced to jail and community service for his part in setting a snapping turtle on fire, an incident he and his friends videotaped and posted on the Internet.
Under the sentence handed down Monday, Joel Charles Ross, of Hawley, will have to serve at least five days in jail, perform at least 50 hours of community service, and pay a $500 fine that he can reduce by $400 with more community service. He would face more jail time and higher fines if he fails to comply with the terms of his probation.
Ross pleaded guilty last month to a misdemeanor charge of animal cruelty for an incident that captured the attention of online viewers and animal rights activists worldwide.
In late May, Ross and two juveniles videotaped themselves dousing the large snapping turtle with gasoline, lighting it on fire twice, and dancing around it. They were discovered after someone sent police an e-mail with a link to the video.
The two juveniles involved received community service earlier.
''This was something that just got way out of control, said Dennis Fisher, Ross's attorney. Fisher asked Clay County District Judge Michael Kirk to impose fines and community service but not jail time, saying Ross and his family had suffered enough.
Ross told Kirk he felt bad for his actions and knew they were wrong. He said his family has been affected, including a brother serving in Iraq.
''He's upset and probably thinks a lot less of me right now,'' Ross said.
Ross also said he had planned to sign up for the National Guard to do military police work. ''Now I can't, because of this,'' he said.
Kirk said he wanted to see more empathy from Ross toward the animal.
In a letter published Tuesday in The Forum of Fargo, N.D., Ross's parents, Michael and Vicky Ross, said their son and his friends had been unfairly vilified by animal rights supporters.
''There is no pattern of cruelty with any of the three teens,'' they wrote. ''There is nothing to indicate that this is anything but an isolated incident and will not likely be repeated with animals, much less humans. ... We and the other parents involved love our sons far more than these people love their stupid turtles and we believe they will turn out just fine.''
http://www.crookstontimes.com/articles/2006/09/19/news/22news4.txt
THE FORUM (Fargo, N Dakota) 19 September 06 Ross family letter: Slander from turtle cult reveals strange theology (Michael and Vicky Ross)
Amoral soulless thugs”; “sick deviates”; “cowardly degenerates”; “demonic killers”; “disgusting examples of human scum”; “future Jeffrey Dahmers.”
These are some of the labels that have been used to publicly slander our 18-year-old son and his two 17-year-old friends in the opinion pages of The Forum and the Hawley, (Minn.) Herald in the aftermath of the turtle burning incident of early June. We cannot recall such malicious rhetoric used even against the likes of Dahmer, Kyle Bell, or Alfonso Rodriguez. But then, their victims were lowly humans and not turtles.
Amoral and soulless is how Ruthie Bodie (Forum, June 24) defines the three. If this is the case, then they are beyond redemption and should be put away permanently or even executed.
Indeed, Hawley native and Minneapolis attorney Lori Peterson (July 10) would wish the death penalty were available for such a crime.
Imagine, lethally injecting three teens for a first-time misdemeanor. Or perhaps it would be more appropriate if they were burned at the stake. You know, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, three boys for a snapper.
For the benefit of those who value human life more than that of animals, Bodie reminds us that serial killers and rapists typically started by abusing animals. This is true enough, but the great majority of those who abuse animals never harm humans. She could have also added that while most porn addicts never become rapists, serials killers or child molesters, invariably all three of these are first porn addicts.
America leads the world in consumption and export of pornography. Are we then a nation of amoral soulless thugs? Why don’t these fine folks take on the pornographers? Porn is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Where big money is involved, the moralists are silenced. And, need we say it, porn victimizes only humans and not turtles.
It is interesting to note that this incident took place on the weekend of the famed Hawley Rodeo. Rodeo is “sport” where animals are traumatized, scared, frequently injured and have to be destroyed. It is also an American tradition, great family entertainment and, again, profitable for many businesses. If animals must suffer, that’s just tough.
This turtle cult espouses a strange theology that says that humankind’s pre-eminent relationship is not with God or other humans but with turtles. If we are first rightly related, that is humane and loving, to turtles and all of what they like to call “God’s precious creatures,” it will follow that we will be likewise to one another. Conversely, if we are not kind to these “precious creatures” we will become Jeffrey Dahmers and cannibalize our civilization into extinction. Or something like that.
Biblically speaking, God is all but silent on the subject of animal cruelty. To the best of our knowledge, there is all of one verse that directly speaks to this issue. It is not a command, just an observation by King Solomon: “A righteous man regards the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel” (Proverbs 12:10). The Bible is concerned first with our relationship to God. When we are rightly related (righteous) to Him we can be rightly related to others and it follows that we will not cause an animal to suffer unnecessarily and certainly not for our entertainment.
As a nation we are no longer rightly related to God and have foreign policy of mass-murder. In March of ’03 we mistakenly believed that incinerating Iraqis with high-tech weapons would be profitable by increasing the flow of cheap Mideast oil. Be assured that if incinerating turtles becomes profitable (like boiling lobsters), the turtle lovers will be ignored. Until then, three Hawley teens are fair game.
In her law practice, Lori Peterson represents victims of sexual abuse. She knows as well as anyone how destructive rape is. Yet she characterizes the turtle incident as “far worse that gang rape.” Far worse than gang rape!? Once again we see where these people are coming from. Hapless humans and not turtles tend to be victims of gang rape.
Do we detect a pattern here? There is no pattern of cruelty with any of the three teens. There is nothing to indicate that this is anything but an isolated incident and will not likely be repeated with animals, much less humans.
There is indeed a pattern with the animal loving crowd. Typically these folks would walk right by an abortion clinic and affirm a woman’s “right to choose.” Is it just coincidence that the abortion rights and animal rights movements appeared about the same time in history? Their great love for animals is exceeded only by their contempt for human life, especially those who don’t worship and adore animals as they do. The pattern is dark, sinister, and ancient, going back to the first human family.
Some of the more radical animal rights activists are possessed by the spirit of Cain, the first murderer who would not kill an animal for sacrifice in obedience to God but had no regard for his own brother’s life.
We and the other parents involved love our sons far more than these people love their stupid turtles and we believe they will turn out just fine.
With all the human misery and bloodshed we see everyday, most of which is perpetrated by our own government, these pitiful people, who are so hateful toward three high school kids, have nothing better to do than to harass them and their families.
To them might we offer just a few friendly suggestions: Find a hobby, do some volunteer work, join a church, get a job; in short, get a life.
The Ross family lives in Hawley, Minn.
http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=140219§ion=Opinion&freebie_check&CFID=1020636&CFTOKEN=43168472
