Maiming of Broadway Star's Yorkie Prompts PETA to Broadcast Edie Falco TV Spot on Animal-Human Violence Link

Studies Suggest That Women Who Reunite With Partners Who Abuse Animals Often Become Victims of Violence 

For Immediate Release:
July 16, 2010

Contact:
Kristin DeJournett 757-622-7382

New York -- "If he abuses your animal companion--you may be next," says award-winning actor Edie Falco, linking animal abuse to domestic violence in a PETA public service announcement (PSA) that the group has just sent to New York–area TV stations in the hope that Broadway performer Ashley Yeater will be listening. Yeater has reunited with her boyfriend, Joseph Graves, after he was convicted of cruelty to animals for maiming her dog Emmit (a 10-pound Yorkie), breaking the dog's ribs, bruising his kidneys, and blinding him in one eye. Graves served 40 days in jail for the crime.

Graves allowed Emmit to suffer with his injuries for two days before taking him to a veterinarian. Yeater sent Emmit to live with her parents after the judge forbade Graves from having any contact with the dog for 18 months, but she says that she plans to bring the dog back into the home with the man who abused him as soon as the law allows.

"Research shows that people who abuse their pets are more likely to abuse women and children too," continues Falco in the PSA. "So if a family member is abusing an animal, call the authorities immediately--because the person who comes home and kicks the dog is probably just warming up."

Falco starred in the heralded HBO series The Sopranos for which she won three Emmys and two Golden Globes, and she has been nominated for an Emmy for her title role in the new Showtime hit Nurse Jackie.

Studies have shown that a domestic abuser's first target is frequently an animal living in the home--the second is often a spouse or child. Often, batterers are able to control human victims by threatening, torturing, or killing animals. A study published in February 2000 in the journal Violence Against Women found that of 111 battered women who had animal companions and who were staying in shelters in South Carolina, almost half reported that their current or former male partners had threatened or abused their animals.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.