John Conyers: “the problem of animal fighting has been in the news a lot lately, with the recent indictment of quarterback Michael…”

“the problem of animal fighting has been in the news a lot lately, with the recent indictment of quarterback Michael Vick, who is alleged to have been involved in a major dogfighting ring. As we are debating the bill that provides funding for the Department of Justice, I wanted to express my hope that the Department will devote the needed resources to bring an end to this vicious so-called ``sport.'' It's cruel and barbaric, and often associated with other crimes. I commend the Department for its ongoing work to determine the truth of the allegations in the Vick case, and urge that it continues to expand its efforts to crack down on animal fighting across the country. I also wanted to note that the DOJ's Safe Streets Task Force could play a key role in increasing law enforcement action against dogfighting. Sadly, animal fighting occurs in all corners of our country, impacting hundreds of thousands of animals every year, and also our communities. Indeed, it is estimated that there are more than 40,000 professional dogfighters nationwide and 10 underground dogfighting magazines. Cockfighting is also a multi-million dollar nationwide industry. I'm pleased that this Congress took action against animal fighting earlier this year when we passed the Federal Animal Fighting Prohibition Enforcement Act and established felony penalties for these crimes.”