PETITION TARGET: Oregon Governor Kate Brown
UPDATE (5/5/2022): We sent our petition, signed by more than 29,833 people, to Gov. Kate Brown to keep the issue of stronger protections for animals on her radar. We’ll continue watching for key legislation that could improve innocent animals’ lives, and we’ll do all we can to advocate for them. — Lady Freethinker Staff
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This case is horrifying. An Oregon man brutally raped his fiancée’s dog in a drunken rage after she wouldn’t respond to his text messages. The dog’s internal injuries were so severe the vet had to euthanize the small Lhasa Apso, named Estrella.
Estrella lost her life — but her attacker only served 60 days in jail, because that is the maximum allowed under current law for first-degree aggravated animal abuse and sexual assault of an animal.
“If it could have been more, I gladly would have given you more time,” the judge said, according to New York Daily News.
Oregon must stop letting animal torturers get away with their crimes.
When this case broke, over 32,000 people signed LFT’s petition calling for justice. But justice has not been served, and we must keep speaking out for Estrella.
Estrella’s attacker, Fidel Lopez, is already out of jail. He will be able to own a dog again in his lifetime. His meager sentence — which includes three years of probation, mental evaluation and counseling — sends a message that anyone can hurt or kill an innocent animal and get away almost scot-free. While counseling is indeed crucial, allowing this man to walk the streets puts both animal and human lives in danger.
“The torture and abuse that Estrella suffered is unimaginable,” Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Nicole Jergovic said in a news release.
And what is to deter Estrella’s rapist from striking again?
Sign this petition urging Oregon Governor Kate Brown to make it a top priority to pass stronger animal protection laws, so judges can hand out appropriate sentences and animal torturers are held accountable for their crimes.
