Dear Friends of Animals,
I am Carmen “Nuch” Trutanich--environmental attorney, former Hardcore Gang Prosecutor with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office, and candidate for Los Angeles City Attorney. I’m pledging to animal lovers that, as your City Attorney, prosecuting criminal acts against animals in Los Angeles will not only continue, but will be enhanced and expanded.Caring for animals is not a political ploy for me--it is a lifelong passion. I grew up in San Pedro and my first rescued pet as a child was a rabbit, named Hoppy, who lived with our family for many years. My wife, Noreen, and I adopted two homeless Jack Russell Terriers when our children were old enough to understand that these were family members, not toys. Fortunately, we still have one of them, Myla, who is now 16 years old. So that Myla wouldn’t be alone, I adopted an adult Beagle, who we named “Lucky”, from a local rescuer three months ago. He has given Myla a new lease on life! Lucky was found in the middle of a downtown street. Today, he can usually be found dozing in the middle of our bed, burrowed under the covers.
I have also rescued many horses, including walking a frightened mare home from a garage sale when I was told by the owners that they would possibly sell her for slaughter because she was “barn sour”. After months of proper care, patience and training, she forgot her fears and enjoyed life as a beloved family companion. My wife and I saved the life of Tonka, my painted quarter horse who was kicked in the leg by a Palomino on a trail ride. The blow fractured his front left leg vertically for eight inches. Tonka was a miracle horse. He broke all expectations after six months at San Luis Rey Equine Center. He lived! In fact, Tonka became the poster horse for animal fracture study and care. His case was studied nationally at many equine veterinary conferences. He taught me so many lessons, the least of which is how much spirit and will animals have to live when they are loved.
I’m telling you this so you will know that the same things that touch your hearts most deeply have also impacted me for a lifetime—not just now that there is an election. The upcoming City Attorney election creates a great opportunity for us, as animal lovers, to put our feelings into action. This is what I envision for the future:
• The City Attorney’s Animal Protection Unit must become a powerful force, assuring that, if someone decides to keep a pet within Los Angeles, they will treat it well…or there will be consequences. On my watch, animal abuse will be vigorously prosecuted and to the full extent of the law.
• Through tough, but just, enforcement, we will increase public awareness that the City of Los Angeles does not tolerate cruelty to any animal—domestic or wildlife. I know this works because, as an environmental prosecutor, I increased public awareness of environmental violations via stern prosecution in the mid-80’s. Corporations protect our air, earth and water better today because of my hard work in the Environmental Crimes/OSHA Division of the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office. The same will hold true for animal-cruelty violations.
• I will partner with the District Attorney’s office to assure that crimes of abuse or neglect of animals receive the full attention they deserve. We will not settle for a misdemeanor if a felony is indicated, and I will work closely with District Attorney Steve Cooley on these cases. That way, criminal offenders will receive the level of justice they deserve. Let the word go out now: “Stay out of the City of Los Angeles if you intend to neglect or abuse animals. It’s a one-way ticket to jail!”
• We meet an additional societal obligation by protecting animals--history has chronicled that humans; especially children, women and the elderly, are often the next victims of those who harm animals. As City Attorney, I will assure that we do not excuse or disregard crimes merely because the victims are voiceless.
I want our City to be a safe place for both humans and animals, and I know you share that dream. I am asking you to give the animals a “true” voice in Los Angeles by voting for me for City Attorney on May 19, 2009.
Download my response to The League of Humane Voters, California Chapter questionnaire, by clicking here
Sincerely,
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4 comments:
You certainly can't accuse Trutanich of pandering - since most politicians don't think the rescue/humane community is even worth considering.
Even if Trutanich didn't make such a point about animals, I'd still vote for him to get rid of Jack Weiss. Weiss only came out against Boks way after he had no other choice, in Boks' last month.
I don't trust politicians who claim they are "for animals" anymore. How many rwscuer's lives is this guy going to ruin? How many more dead and re-spayed cats is he going to be responsible for? The problem is that none of these "I'm for animals" people pay attention to an individual case, they just have an agenda - and the welfare of cats is not on any politician's agenda. Hell, it's not even on a lot of rescuer's agendas.
To be fair, it was the City Attorney's office that finally stopped what was happening to Ron Mason. Unlike Boks, ultimately they have to decide if it's an anywhere-close-to legal case they can win. Unlike all of LAAS they actually do have to know what the law is.
I talked to a political consultant once who supports candidates purely based on humane issues. He said his group actually advises candidates NOT to make too big a deal about animal issues in campaigns, because people who don't care about animals think it's
frivolous.
The fact that Trutanich not only talks about it, but makes it number two on his agenda (only behind cleaning up the City Attorney's office which, after Rocky Delgadillo, has really got to be agenda item one) I think is really impressive.
And bottom line is, it's a proven fact that Jack Weiss wouldn't care if Angelenos killed animals in front of him, just so long as he makes his big City paycheck doing nothing. He never showed up for City Council, but he did exert himself to make sure the police didn't go after a certain faction of Orthodox Jews who kill live chickens for Kapparot. Why? Because Orthodox Jews can vote, and what has a chicken ever done for Jack Weiss?
Weiss never gave a tiny damn about what Ed Boks was doing until it began to come back to the City Council. If Boks harassed women, drove drunk, persecuted rescuers like Ron Mason, and killed animals, Weiss didn't care. I know this for a fact because I called his office about Boks. But when Boks undercut the spay/neuter law passed by the City Council, all of a sudden Weiss was shocked, SHOCKED to discover that Ed Boks was an incompetent screw-up.
Villaraigosa isn't interested in listening to us because he thinks he's going to concentrate on becoming Governor. However, his less-than-stellar numbers during the recent election took some of the wind out of his sails. Now he's focused on getting his man (and no one else's) Weiss in as City Attorney.
If you can't believe in Trutanich, you surely can believe in voting against Villaraigosa. I voted against him in the last election (and I voted FOR him the first time), and I'm happy to do it again by voting against Weiss. I hope Trutanich does fight for animals, but in the absence of that certainty, I will definitely settle for voting AGAINST anti-animal politicians like Villaraigosa and Weiss.
All I can say is I really like that photo of him head to head with that mule =)
Brad Jensen
Cypress,CA
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