In response to a circuit judge’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit resulting from a 2018 constitutional amendment that forbade dog racing at Florida pari-mutuels, the owner of a greyhound kennel in Pinellas County filed a petition with an appeals court.
Attorneys for Christopher D’Arcy and D’Arcy Kennel, LLC have argued that the ballot initiative that was approved by the voters constituted an illegal “taking” of property. However, Leon County Circuit Judge Angela Dempsey rejected the arguments in her ruling last month, stating, among other things, that the referendum only forbade greyhound owners from using their animals in Florida pari-mutuel races.
In this case, plaintiffs “retain virtually every stick in the bundle of property rights — they can still race their dogs, sell their dogs, keep them as pets, and even race them in wagered races in other states where wagering on greyhound racing is allowed,” Dempsey wrote. “In Florida, the only thing they cannot do is compete against them in a paid race.” There is no taking because of that restriction. ”.
Last week, D’Arcy submitted a notice of appeal to the 1st District Court of Appeal. The notice, as is customary, did not specify the arguments that D’Arcy will raise before the Tallahassee-based appeals court. However, D’Arcy’s attorneys argued in circuit court that he should be entitled to compensation due to the consequences of the constitutional amendment.
“The scope and impact of the regulation was so devastating to the plaintiffs’ (D’Arcy and the kennel) interest in their private property that they would have been financially better off if the state had taken actual physical possession of all the property and thus spared the plaintiffs the cost of caring for the animals until he was able to place them, also at additional cost, for adoption,” the plaintiffs’ attorney wrote in an October filing.
According to Hume, the racetrack collaborates with four adoption organizations whose standards are in line with those of the National Greyhound Association. But she claimed that the demand is greater than the supply due to the declining number of dogs competing in the sport.
But this divide over Florida foreshadows the next chapter. Only four tracks will host greyhound racing in 2021 in Arkansas, Iowa, and West Virginia. Only West Virginia, however, lacks a target date for the phase-out.
Animal welfare organizations that supported Amendment 13 centered their outreach and television advertising campaign on what they described as pervasive harm and doping. According to the Humane Society, greyhounds can spend up to 23 hours per day in cages during racing, and their $3 million effort described the confinement that comes with it.
According to marketing coordinator Alexis Winning, as of mid-December, Derby Lane had 609 dogs at the track. Winning, however, argued that it was still too soon to determine how many would be adopted out versus sent to compete somewhere else.
The Humane Society of the United States, which collaborated with Grey2K to pass Amendment 13, claims that greyhound racing is now prohibited in more than 40 states.
Thankfully, dedicated rescue groups are making every effort to save the lives of these animals. More than $15,000 has been provided by the Humane Society of the United States to assist rescued greyhounds in finding their forever homes. We are anticipating the day when each of these pets will be cared for by a loving family and spend their days playing, begging for treats, and cuddling on a couch.
Earlier this year, Alabama and Texas closed their last racetracks. Forty-one states, including Florida, have banned greyhound racing. Only West Virginia and Iowa will still have greyhound racetracks after Arkansas’ final track closes in 2021. The sport is in a downward spiral in these states as well, but is being supported by tax dollars.
Greyhound racing was abandoned by spectators as awareness of this cruelty increased, and the animals frequently ran in front of nearly empty stands. Momentum to end racing in Florida, the last remaining stronghold of this industry, was so strong that when we and our partners Grey2K USA Worldwide and Doris Day Animal League pushed for Amendment 13 to outlaw greyhound racing in the state in 2018, the measure passed by almost 70 percent. Doris Day Animal League was the largest donor to the campaign because this was a legacy issue for Doris Day. And this occurred in spite of the American Kennel Club, the NRA, and the Farm Bureau, three influential organizations that lobbied against this measure, having deep pockets and voicing vociferous opposition.
This day could not have come soon enough, and we are honored by our part in making it so. The animals who were supposed to be the stars of greyhound racing paid a terrible price over the decades that the sport thrived in the United States. Florida started keeping track of greyhound deaths in 2013, and since then, 493 dogs have perished on its tracks. These dogs were three years old or younger in 94% of the cases. One dog was reportedly killed on a Florida track every three days in 2018, when the state had 11 tracks open for business.
Greyhound racing was never a good idea, and fortunately, it will soon be a dead one. According to a recent National Geographic article, although greyhound adoption agencies are trying to find homes for the dogs racing at the last three remaining tracks, the industry will not accept assistance from any adoption group that supported the ban.
Dorchak stated that her organization is pushing for federal legislation that would outlaw greyhound racing because she is still dissatisfied with the state of the sport, which she claims has bipartisan support.
Humane Society Florida Director Kate MacFall recently told NBC News that her state’s role in the decline of the sport was that “Florida was the mecca (of dog racing), the base, the largest state with the most tracks.” “Now this industry has withered. “.
The Mega Millions game sold $2. 6 billion in tickets in 45 states, Washington D. C. and the U. S. Virgin Islands in fiscal year 2019-20. That represents a significant increase from the $434 million that Mega’s predecessor, The Big Game, sold in 1996–1997 in just six states.
Baseball in particular, he claimed, is beginning to lose popularity among the more traditional, slower sports. “Perhaps that is the stigma that dog racing carries as well? It’s an old one. Its done. Its seen its time. “.
According to Christine Dorchak, co-founder of the anti-racing organization GREY2K, with Florida’s ban now in place, there are laws against the sport in 41 states.
FAQ
How many greyhound tracks are still open in 2022?
After gaming was legalized in Arkansas in 2019, the only remaining track there announced that 2022 would be its final year of operation. This left only West Virginia’s Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack and Arkansas’s Mardi Gras Casino and Resort operating.
What states still allow greyhound racing?
Today, only Alabama, Arkansas, Iowa, Texas, and West Virginia still permit greyhound racing and maintain active tracks. Although there are no active racetracks in four states, greyhound racing is still legal there. Those states are Wisconsin, Connecticut, Kansas, and Oregon.
Is there anymore greyhound racing in Florida?
Forty-one states, including Florida, have banned greyhound racing. Only West Virginia and Iowa will still have greyhound racetracks after Arkansas’ final track closes in 2021. The sport is in a downward spiral in these states as well, but is being supported by tax dollars.
Did greyhound racing get banned in Florida?
Some supporters of the racing industry claim that now that the ban has been implemented, activists in favor of it have no right to claim the dogs that will eventually require new homes. According to Vera Rasnake, head of media relations for Greyhound Pets of America, which opposed the ban, “that’s the one thing that really is frustrating.”