JDN Article February 3, 2006

Doug Stewart of Bubba’s Hope House on Hwy 26 North of Lake Arthur was recently granted an injunction to protect the fate of his two tigers from action by the Jeff Davis Parish Police Jury. Ordinance 2082 was adopted by the JD Police Jury on May 25, 2005 after Stewart’s neighbors voiced concerns over the dangerous nature of the tigers. The ordinance stipulates that exotic animals, including tigers are prohibited within the boundaries of Jeff Davis Parish. It further stipulates that anyone housing an exotic animal after a 6 month period which ended on December 17^th, 2005 would be in violation of the newly enacted ordinance. The temporary injunction handed down by 31^st Judicial District Judge Wendell Miller prevents the Police Jury from enforcing the ordinance. A petition was filed on Jan 17, 2006 that asserts:

1)The Police Jury adopted the ordinance without following proper state guidelines of calling for a vote and actually voting on the ordinance during the same meeting, which the petition states, violates state law. 

2)The Police Jury has no authority under Louisiana law to adopt an ordinance that purports to regulate and prohibit the private possession of exotic animals, by reason that it has not been granted authority by the Constitution of Louisiana nor the legislative enactments of this state.

 3) The ordinance, if enforced will deny him procedural due process rights under the US Constitution and the Constitution of the State of Louisiana because the ordinance does not provide for him an opportunity to be heard prior to confiscation and destruction of his property.

At the present the Police Jury is unable to enforce this ordinance. 

This is an important case to watch as it’s decision will have farther reaching consequences. Judge Miller is on the ball by issuing the temporary injunction. The Police Jury could have opted to require a certain size fence surrounding the compound or some other security measures but the chose instead to go right after Doug Stewarts ownership rights. It was destined to be a failure from the start.  

This writing is not about the defense of tigers or the defense of Doug Stewart. I knew from the moment it started that Stewart’s neighbors were off on the wrong tangent in getting a resolution to their problem. I’m sure they were disappointed in Judge Millers decision as were other opinionated people. But Judge Miller is standing on the side of Constitutionally protected ownership rights and an attempt by a Police Jury to once again overstep it’s authority. This is by no means their first time nor will it be their last.

Luckily Stewart has the resources to fight it, even if it is money he got off some poor misguided woman. For himself he is fighting to keep his tigers. For the rest of us he’ll be fighting for ownership rights. If and when he wins, we can use his case as a legal point in our own future cases should we have to fight for our ownership rights.
 
Personally? What the hell does Doug Stewart need with Bengal Tigers? Sounds to me like he is doing a great job of pissing away, somebody else’s money.  He claims he uses them for therapy for troubled teens. If that’s the case then it is the jurisdiction under the agency that controls hospitals, and other locations where physical and mental therapy is applied. The next question should be is he legally qualified to administer therapy to troubled teens using exotic animals? Does he possess the appropriate licenses?
Just from what I have heard, I personally think the whole thing is kind of creepy. Sort of Michael Jackson’ish! But hey….that’s just me!

The neighbor’s angle of attack should have been different and whoever was organizing this thing or advising them was trying to pull the strings of their police juryman instead of trying to pull the strings of their State Legislators. 

This is yet another example of how political subdivisions and municipalities create new ordinances without even worrying about if they have a legal right to. There is a mentality to run these ordinances up the flagpole and hope that nobody challenges them. Only the people with other peoples money can afford to challenge them. We cannot continue to allow our local politicians to create laws against us when they have no legal right to do so. They need to stay within the framework of their own authority. The local police jury, city council, board of alderman or school board does not have more authority than the legislative, executive and judicial branches of government. The Police Jury is no alone in this. They are all doing it!

I have not read the exact wording of the ordinance but the definition of exotic is: alien, being from or characteristic of another place or part of the world. That encompasses more than just tigers. It could also be certain varieties of almost every breed of animal, including horses, cattle, emu's, or your kids pet. Residents should be careful of what they ask for. If you fight with your neighbor by having ordinances drawn up against them without control over the wording, your neighbor can turn around and leverage the ordinance against you and everybody around you.

Once again I feel compelled to say: Handing over more power to individuals and government agencies, who, at the same time are quietly pursuing less liability and accountability for their actions is a dangerous combination for the American public.