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STILLWELL, Okla. — Only two days before the Oklahoma Legislature convenes in Oklahoma City for the second half of the 59th legislative session, more than 100 cockfighters gathered at a metal building in a remote area of Adair County. They engaged in eight hours of cockfighting and unregulated gambling, both of which are felonies in Oklahoma.
Showing Animal Respect and Kindness (SHARK) discovered the fighting pit and the derby that occurred there. This marks the latest revelation of a hardened, underground cockfighting community. They are disregarding the rule of law and shamelessly petitioning legislators to weaken the law.
Cockfighters’ Bold Operation near the Ozarks
With bills pending in the Legislature to decriminalize their bloodsport, cockfighters felt confident enough to brazenly continue torturing animals in the foothills of the Ozarks some 200 miles east of the state capitol.
More than 100 vehicles were parked haphazardly around a wooded clearing littered with rooster cages and trailers. Unbeknownst to them, humane investigators from SHARK and Animal Wellness Action were documenting their criminal gathering.
Challenges in Combating Cockfighting-Related Crimes in Oklahoma
Veteran cruelty investigator Steve Hindi of SHARK said the Adair County cockfight was one of the biggest cockfighting derbies he had ever monitored. “There were over a hundred vehicles there,” Hindi said. “If the vehicles averaged two people each, that would be easily two hundred people. These are organized criminals, and law enforcement must stop their illegal activities without fear or favor.”
Local law enforcement made efforts to shut down the illegal operation. However, they encountered initial resistance, underscoring the challenges in enforcing existing cockfighting laws.
A quite different outcome played out the previous week in Cleveland County, Okla., just 20 miles south of the State Capitol Building. There, Norman City Police and Animal Welfare officers discovered a large cockfighting operation and seized 77 fighting roosters.
The Cruelty and Criminal Connections
“The seized roosters were found in deplorable conditions alongside evidence of brutal training and exploitation of the animals for fighting purposes,” Norman public information officer Sarah Schettler said.
Kevin Chambers, Oklahoma state director for Animal Wellness Action and a native of Adair County, said that “enforcement of state cockfighting laws has been mixed even though the cruel practice is associated with a host of other crimes, such as illegal gambling, drug trafficking, gang activity, illegal weapon sales, and violence.”
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“Cockfighters are traveling from all over the U.S. and Mexico to engage in illegal animal fighting and gambling in our state,” Chambers said. “Some are even moving here because they see Oklahoma as hospitable for animal fighting. This is outrageous, and it’s time for a relentless campaign by law enforcement to shutter the cockfighting pits and animal trafficking and ride Oklahoma of this crime wave.”
Incentivizing Reporting: Animal Wellness Action’s Reward Program
To help combat cockfighting as well as dogfighting, Animal Wellness Action has launched a new reward program. Moreover, this program offers cash compensation not only for information that leads to arrests and convictions but also for tips on the location of planned or occurring cockfights in the state.
The organization will provide $2,500 to any individual who provides tips to the organization or to law enforcement. These tips must result in arrests in Oklahoma for illegal cockfighting under state or federal law. Amounts for other information will vary based on the credibility and timeliness of the tips. Hence, people with such knowledge may email OKcrueltytips@animalwellnessaction.org.
Oklahoma’s Strict Laws Against Cockfighting and Federal Provisions
Cockfighting has been illegal in Oklahoma since voters banned it by ballot initiative in 2002. Under state law, there are several felonies related to cockfighting. These actions include instigating or encouraging a cockfight, maintaining places, equipment, or facilities for cockfighting, and facilitating a cockfight. Accordingly, state law also prohibits individuals from owning, possessing, or training roosters with the intent of using them for cockfighting. It is a misdemeanor to knowingly spectate a staged cockfight.
There is a complementary and overlapping federal statute that has a provision forbidding any movement of fighting animals within or outside of Oklahoma.
SHARK and Animal Wellness Action have documented that cockfighters have shipped tens of thousands of fighting animals to Mexico, Guam, the Philippines, and other far-off dens of cockfighting. They are consorting with cartel operators who control most of the pits in Mexico.
Congress is also considering a further upgrade of the federal animal fighting law in the form of the bipartisan FIGHT Act, H.R. 2742/S. 1529. That bill has more than 450 agencies and organizations behind it. Furthermore, it would create a private right of action to allow citizens to sue dogfighters or cockfighters in civil proceedings.