Protesters gather outside the Humboldt County Courthouse in late June. | Screenshot of video by Ryan Burns.
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Amid continuing outrage over the mass dog graves and allegations of fraud and abuse at Miranda’s Rescue in Fortuna, two different coalitions of animal welfare organizations will hold press conferences on Monday outside the State Capitol in Sacramento.
The first press conference, scheduled for 10 a.m., has been organized by the California Animal Welfare Organization (CalAnimals), the state association for animal control agencies, humane societies, SPCAs (societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals) and other animal welfare groups.
The organization is calling on state legislators to create a new Bureau of Companion Animal Welfare that would provide licensing for companion animal businesses and organizations across the state; conduct inspections and investigate complaints; support enforcement of existing animal welfare laws; collect and publish statewide data; and coordinate with local law enforcement agencies.
The coalition includes Oakland Animal Services, which sent more than 800 dogs to Miranda’s Rescue since 2020, as well as the ASPCA, the San Diego Humane Society, the Animal Legal Defense Fund, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office and others.
Sheriff William Honsal is quoted in a press release issued by CalAnimals saying, “A statewide Bureau will give California an earlier line of sight into how animals are received, cared for, transferred and adopted, while preserving the authority of local agencies. Better information and coordination can help us respond sooner and protect both animals and the public.”
The other press conference, which will be held elsewhere at the Capitol on Monday at 10:30 a.m., is being organized by the Fix Our Shelters coalition, a California-based animal advocacy and watchdog nonprofit led by President Julie Virga.
Reached by phone, Virga said their goal is similar the other coalition’s.
“Basically, we want to continue sending the message that animal protection laws exist and that the Miranda’s Rescue situation is just an illumination of the failure of jurisdictions to enforce those animal protection laws,” she said. “What we will ask of the Legislature is that they pass legislation that will provide an enforcement mechanism through Department of Food and Agriculture to make sure that local jurisdictions are enforcing the law.”
Jennifer Raymond, the Fortuna animal rights activist who kick-started the multi-agency criminal investigation into Miranda’s Rescue owner Shannon Miranda, told the Outpost on Thursday that she’ll be making the trip to Sacramento in order to advocate for that same goal.
“I want to see someplace where people can turn,” she said, noting that she tried many times over the years to get local law enforcement to investigate Miranda’s Rescue. “That was my frustration. I reached out to the Attorney General’s Office, the IRS, the Department of Justice, and everybody said, ‘Talk to local law enforcement.’ And local law enforcement wasn’t doing anything.”
Raymond is hopeful that a new legislation or a new state agency or bureau will close existing gaps in animal welfare protection in California.
“There are already laws on the books that require rescues to keep records, but [those laws] don’t say what [operators] have to do with them,” she said. “The law doesn’t say they have to report those records to anybody.”
Raymond said she’s going to Sacramento to support the concept of more regulation, oversight and accountability, though she expects that any specific proposals are liable to change before being presented to the Legislature.
“What I’m really hoping for is to get all these groups talking to each other,” she said. “They historically tend to fight with each other.” She feels that this in-fighting has stymied previous attempts to pass meaningful legislation on this front.
“We have between now and February to talk about this,” Raymond said. “I’ve written to everybody, saying, ‘Do you have a proposal? Let’s get together and start hammering out our differences.’ I don’t know if we will have any luck, but I’m certainly going to try.”
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LINKS
- CalAnimals fact sheet on proposed California Companion Animal Welfare and Oversight Act
- CalAnimals press release
PREVIOUSLY
- Search Warrant Served at Miranda’s Rescue Amid Allegations of Felony Animal Abuse, Fraud and Conspiracy
- Miranda’s Rescue Search Warrant Reveals Eight Dead Dogs Have Been Recovered; Sheriff’s Investigator Believes Miranda Killed Them for Financial Gain
- BREAKING: At Miranda’s Rescue, Multiple Agencies, Including the FBI, Execute Search Warrant Authorizing Excavation
- (VIDEO) More Than 700 Dogs From Miranda’s Rescue Remain Unaccounted For, Sheriff Honsal Says; Excavation of Grounds to Continue for Several Days
- ‘It’s Gruesome’: Investigators Dig Up More Than A Dozen Dog Carcasses at Miranda’s Rescue on Day Two of Excavations
- ‘This Investigation is Just Getting Started’: Sheriff’s Office Uncovers 117 Dog Carcasses, 21 Skulls and ‘Hundreds of Bones’ at Miranda’s Rescue
- (VIDEO) Humboldt County Sheriff Details Evidence From Barn ‘Kill Zone,’ Offers Updates on Miranda’s Rescue Criminal Investigation
- Shannon Miranda Admits Sending Fake Adoption Texts About Dogs He Shot Dead, Affidavit Says
- Oakland Nonprofit Dog Rescue Sues Shannon Miranda and ‘Co-Conspirators’ for Animal Cruelty and Fraud
- ‘I Will No Longer Stay Silent’: Shannon Miranda Issues Statement Decrying ‘Gestapo Tactics’ by Law Enforcement and ‘Lies’ From Critics
- Sheriff Honsal Responds to Shannon Miranda’s Accusations: ‘The Facts Will Ultimately Speak for Themselves’
- County Suspends Miranda’s Rescue’s Permit and Bans Use of the Parcel Where ‘Kill Zone’ Barn and Burial Sites are Located
Forensic veterinarians perform inspections of exhumed dog carcasses during a multi-agency excavation and search of Miranda’s Rescue in June. | Photo via HCSO.
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