Okeechobee Sheriff Chastises Animal Rights Group in Abuse Case

Okeechobee County, Fla., Sheriff Noel Stephen called out the animal rights group, Animal Recovery Mission (ARM), for disclosing the photos of potential defendants in alleged animal abuse videos it released and subjecting his officers to death threats for allegedly not pursuing allegations hard enough, reports WINK News, Fort Meyers, Fla.

By releasing on-line videos of the allegations prior to the sheriff’s investigation, the suspects in the videos were able to flee the state to avoid prosecution. The threats to officers came after people viewed the ARM videos and thought officers weren’t doing their jobs by prosecuting farm owners.

But a sheriff officer says some of the activities, such as flaming udders to keep them clean, is actually accepted industry practice. The County Sheriff’s investigation found owners of the four dairies investigated were not aware of the alleged abuse on their farms shown in the videos.

Watch the WINK report on the case below.

More reporting on the ongoing animal abuse investigation in Florida can be found from the following stories:

• Two Florida Dairy Workers Sentenced for Animal Abuse
• Three Dairy Workers Arrested in Florida Animal Abuse Case
• Undercover Animal Abuse Video Released from Fourth Florida Dairy
• Animal Rights Activists Release More Abuse Videos from Florida Dairies
• Second Florida Dairy Accused of Animal Abuse
• Florida Dairy Farm on Probation Following Abuse Allegations