Community Should Fear for Public Safety, Say Experts

For Immediate Release:
June 16, 2005

Contact:
Daniel Paden 757-622-7382 

Queens, N.Y.- This morning, PETA sent an urgent plea to Queens County District Attorney Richard A. Brown, urging him to vigorously prosecute Caswell Blake of Queens. Blake faces felony charges stemming from a June 1 incident in which he allegedly attacked a puppy who had been taken in by his adult son. “[H]e hit the dog” with an iron chair, Blake’s wife told news sources. The puppy reportedly suffered a gash in one of his paws and was left in the family’s backyard—bleeding heavily—where he evidently became anemic as a result of his injury.

“Animal abusers are cowards,” says PETA Cruelty Caseworker Daniel Paden. “They take their issues out on the most defenseless beings available to them. Area residents have reason to be concerned. According to leading mental-health professionals and law-enforcement agencies, perpetrators of violent acts against animals are often repeat offenders who pose a serious threat not only to other animals, but to the community as a whole.”

PETA is asking that¯if convicted and in addition to a period of incarceration—Blake be banned for life from owning animals, as is allowed by New York law. PETA is also asking that Blake be required to undergo a thorough psychological evaluation followed by mandatory counseling.

PETA is also sending its anti-violence public service announcement hosted by actor Dennis Franz to TV stations serving the Queens area.

For more information, please visit HelpingAnimals.com.

PETA’s letter to District Attorney Richard A. Brown follows.

June 16, 2005

The Honorable Richard A. Brown
Queens County District Attorney
125-01 Queens Blvd.
Kew Gardens, NY 11415

Dear Mr. Brown:

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is the world’s largest animal rights organization, with more than 850,000 members and supporters dedicated to animal protection. This letter concerns a recent cruelty-to-animals case that your office is handling, involving Caswell Blake, 51, of Queens. Blake faces felony charges stemming from his alleged June 1 attack on a puppy inside his Merrill Street home. According to news sources, Blake—evidently enraged by his adult son’s bringing the animal into the family residence—grabbed an iron chair and bashed the animal with it, leaving a deep gash in one of his paws. The heavily bleeding animal was said to have then been left in the family’s backyard, where he evidently became anemic as a result of his injury.

Mental-health professionals and top law-enforcement officials consider cruelty to animals to be a red flag. The American Psychiatric Association identifies animal abuse as one of the diagnostic criteria for conduct disorders, and the FBI uses reports of cruelty to animals in analyzing the threat potential of suspected and known criminals. Experts agree that it is the severity of the behavior—not the species of the victim—that matters.

We ask that, upon conviction and in addition to his serving every day of the two years’ incarceration that he would thus face, Caswell Blake be required to undergo a thorough psychological evaluation followed by mandatory counseling and anger-management classes at personal expense¯the safety of the community may depend on it. Because repeat crimes are the rule rather than the exception among animal abusers and given the violent and malicious nature of his alleged actions that day, we implore you to take every measure necessary to ensure that he is banned for life from owning animals per Article 26, § 374.5(c) of New York Consolidated Laws and to immediately seize any animals who remain in his charge.