3 : Man Is An Animal That Makes Bargains: No Ot...
Most of this time Mr. Jones had spent sitting in the taproom of the Red Lion at Willingdon, complaining to anyone who would listen of the monstrous injustice he had suffered in being turned out of his property by a pack of good-for-nothing animals. The other farmers sympathised in principle, but they did not at first give him much help. At heart, each of them was secretly wondering whether he could not somehow turn Jones's misfortune to his own advantage. It was lucky that the owners of the two farms which adjoined Animal Farm were on permanently bad terms. One of them, which was named Foxwood, was a large, neglected, old-fashioned farm, much overgrown by woodland, with all its pastures worn out and its hedges in a disgraceful condition. Its owner, Mr. Pilkington, was an easy-going gentleman farmer who spent most of his time in fishing or hunting according to the season. The other farm, which was called Pinchfield, was smaller and better kept. Its owner was a Mr. Frederick, a tough, shrewd man, perpetually involved in lawsuits and with a name for driving hard bargains. These two disliked each other so much that it was difficult for them to come to any agreement, even in defence of their own interests.
3 : Man Is an Animal That Makes Bargains: No Ot...
Nevertheless, they were both thoroughly frightened by the rebellion on Animal Farm, and very anxious to prevent their own animals from learning too much about it. At first they pretended to laugh to scorn the idea of animals managing a farm for themselves. The whole thing would be over in a fortnight, they said. They put it about that the animals on the Manor Farm (they insisted on calling it the Manor Farm; they would not tolerate the name "Animal Farm") were perpetually fighting among themselves and were also rapidly starving to death. When time passed and the animals had evidently not starved to death, Frederick and Pilkington changed their tune and began to talk of the terrible wickedness that now flourished on Animal Farm. It was given out that the animals there practised cannibalism, tortured one another with red-hot horseshoes, and had their females in common. This was what came of rebelling against the laws of Nature, Frederick and Pilkington said.
However, these stories were never fully believed. Rumours of a wonderful farm, where the human beings had been turned out and the animals managed their own affairs, continued to circulate in vague and distorted forms, and throughout that year a wave of rebelliousness ran through the countryside. Bulls which had always been tractable suddenly turned savage, sheep broke down hedges and devoured the clover, cows kicked the pail over, hunters refused their fences and shot their riders on to the other side. Above all, the tune and even the words of Beasts of England were known everywhere. It had spread with astonishing speed. The human beings could not contain their rage when they heard this song, though they pretended to think it merely ridiculous. They could not understand, they said, how even animals could bring themselves to sing such contemptible rubbish. Any animal caught singing it was given a flogging on the spot. And yet the song was irrepressible. The blackbirds whistled it in the hedges, the pigeons cooed it in the elms, it got into the din of the smithies and the tune of the church bells. And when the human beings listened to it, they secretly trembled, hearing in it a prophecy of their future doom.
The men gave a shout of triumph. They saw, as they imagined, their enemies in flight, and they rushed after them in disorder. This was just what Snowball had intended. As soon as they were well inside the yard, the three horses, the three cows, and the rest of the pigs, who had been lying in ambush in the cowshed, suddenly emerged in their rear, cutting them off. Snowball now gave the signal for the charge. He himself dashed straight for Jones. Jones saw him coming, raised his gun and fired. The pellets scored bloody streaks along Snowball's back, and a sheep dropped dead. Without halting for an instant, Snowball flung his fifteen stone against Jones's legs. Jones was hurled into a pile of dung and his gun flew out of his hands. But the most terrifying spectacle of all was Boxer, rearing up on his hind legs and striking out with his great iron-shod hoofs like a stallion. His very first blow took a stable-lad from Foxwood on the skull and stretched him lifeless in the mud. At the sight, several men dropped their sticks and tried to run. Panic overtook them, and the next moment all the animals together were chasing them round and round the yard. They were gored, kicked, bitten, trampled on. There was not an animal on the farm that did not take vengeance on them after his own fashion. Even the cat suddenly leapt off a roof onto a cowman's shoulders and sank her claws in his neck, at which he yelled horribly. At a moment when the opening was clear, the men were glad enough to rush out of the yard and make a bolt for the main road. And so within five minutes of their invasion they were in ignominious retreat by the same way as they had come, with a flock of geese hissing after them and pecking at their calves all the way.
The reason the prosecutor usually makes the best plea bargain offer at the FDC is to save money and reduce the work of prosecutors. It works like this: if you take the offer at the FDC, then the prosecutor does not have to reassign the case to another prosecutor, the prosecutor does not have to prepare the case for preliminary hearing, a prosecutor does not have to interview witnesses or bring the witnesses to court, a prosecutor does not have to bring the evidence to court, and law enforcement officers do not have to come to court. Therefore, the "bargain" for a prosecutor in a "plea bargain" is that it saves the prosecutor work, and it saves the courts time and money. Of course, whether the offer is a "bargain" for you, is something that you will discuss with your lawyer, but the decision whether to accept or reject a prosecutor's offer is your decision.
Criminal prosecution typically begins with an arrest by a police officer. A police officer may arrest a person if (1) the officer observes the person committing a crime; (2) the officer has probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed by that person; or (3) the officer makes the arrest under the authority of a valid arrest warrant. After the arrest, the police books the suspect. When the police complete the booking process, they place the suspect in custody. If the suspect commited a minor offense, the policy may issue a citation to the suspect with instructions to appear in court at a later date.
A preliminary hearing, or preliminary examination, is an adversarial proceeding in which counsel questions witnesses and both parties makes arguments. The judge then makes the ultimate finding of probable cause. The grand jury, on the other hand, hears only from the prosecutor. The grand jury may call their own witnesses and request that further investigations be performed. The grand jury then decides whether sufficient evidence has been presented to indict the defendant.
At trial, the judge or the jury will either find the defendant guilty or not guilty. The prosecution bears the burden of proof in a criminal trial. Thus, the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant committed the crimes charged. The defendant has a constitutional right to a jury trial in most criminal matters. A jury or judge makes the final determination of guilt or innocence after listening to opening and closing statements, examination and cross-examination of witnesses and jury instructions. If the jury fails to reach a unanimous verdict, the judge may declare a mistrial, and the case will either be dismissed or a new jury will be chosen. If a judge or jury finds the defendant guilty, the court will sentence the defendant.
A GUIDE FOR JUDGES, PROSECUTORS AND DEFENSE COUNSEL Prepared byThe Committee on Legal Issues Pertaining to Animalsof The Association of the Bar of the City of New YorkTable of Contents I. INTRODUCTION II. PROHIBITED ACTS A. AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS LAW1. Fighting2. Misdemeanor Cruelty3. Felony Cruelty (New)4. Abandonment5. Other OffensesB. PENAL LAW1. Attempt to Commit a Crime2. Other OffensesC. NYC HEALTH CODE1. Leash Law2. License Law3. Rabies Law4. Other provisions III. SEARCHES, SEIZURES AND HOLDING ANIMALS PENDING DISPOSITION OF CASESA. NYC ADMINISTRATIVE CODEB. AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS LAWC. BOND REQUIREMENT (NEW) IV. SENTENCING, INCLUDING FORFEITURE OF ANIMALS AND PROHIBITION OF CONTACT WITH ANIMALS A. FORFEITURE OF ANIMALS AND PROHIBITION OF CONTACT WITH ANIMALSB. OTHER ASPECTS OF SENTENCING1. Mandatory surcharges and fees2. Youthful and juvenile offenders3. Repeat offendersC. ASPCA COUNSELING PROGRAMV. RESOURCES I. IntroductionUntil quite recently, an animal abuser was likely to face the following consequences, if he or she faced any at all:The receipt of a summons, rather than a formal arrest.
An appearance, unopposed by a prosecutor, in the summons part of a local court.
A small (e.g., $50-100) fine on a guilty plea to a violation, rather than a crime.
Perhaps most ominously, the abuser retained property rights in the abused animal. Upon leaving the courthouse, he or she could simply reclaim the animal from the local animal shelter. In recent years, law enforcement agencies have begun to take animal abuse cases more seriously. In 1995, a special task force dedicated to the effective prosecution of animal fighting and cruelty cases was formed among the five New York City District Attorneys, the New York City Police Department, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Center for Animal Care and Control.However, the law regarding animal abuse remains unfamiliar terrain to most law enforcement personnel, judges and lawyers. Most of the relevant provisions are contained not in the Penal Law, but in other statutes that few judges and lawyers have on their desks. Hence this guide. This guide was prepared by the Committee on Legal Issues Pertaining to Animals, whose members include lawyers with extensive experience in animal fighting and cruelty cases. It is designed to provide ready access to the law governing the issues that are likely to arise in such cases. For more unusual questions, the reader is referred to the applicable statutes cited in this guide, the (rather meager) case law on the subject, Committee members and the other organizations listed in Section V. The guide is intended solely to provide general information of a summary nature and should not be relied upon as legal advice as to specific matters.II. Prohibited ActsThe Agriculture and Markets Law contains the most important animal protection statutes, including the prohibitions of cruelty and fighting. The Penal Law is also significant, primarily because many of its general provisions apply in animal cases. For example, the prohibition of Attempt to Commit a Crime (Article 110) includes an attempt to commit an animal-related crime defined in the Agriculture and Markets Law. Also, in New York City, a charge of an attempt to commit a misdemeanor (e.g., an attempt to commit misdemeanor animal cruelty) is tried in a single judge trial rather than a jury trial, thus reducing the burden of these cases on the criminal justice system.The New York City Health Code contains misdemeanor provisions which do not involve cruelty per se, but which are commonly violated by dog fighters and are sometimes charged along with fighting and cruelty offenses.back to top 041b061a72