When Midge Grinstead, director of the Lawrence Humane Society, entered Ernest Martin's garage 10 years ago, nothing could have prepared her for the horror inside.
A dead pit bull lay decaying on the garage floor. The animal was covered with garbage and its throat was ripped open from a fight. Five dogs tied up in the backyard suffered infected wounds, cropped ears, filed teeth, and other signs of the gruesome sport of dog fighting. Officials seized all 16 of Martin's pit bulls, including 11 puppies.
Authorities charged Martin with dog fighting, but the prosecutor could not build a strong enough case. In order to convict someone of dog fighting under Kansas law in 1997, the individual needed to be caught in the act. Instead, the court convicted Martin of animal cruelty and the judge sentenced him to a year in prison. He was released in six months.
Recent accusations against Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick and several others have once again shed light on the illegal sport.
Dog fighting in Lawrence has declined significantly since the Martin incident. Grinstead said the number of physically abused pit bulls brought to the Lawrence Humane Society dropped from 600 to two in the past 10 years.
"Dog fighting is not a problem in Lawrence," said Grinstead. "But that doesn't mean it doesn't exist."
Click HERE to watch a video about the decrease in local dog fighting.
Ten years ago, the Lawrence Humane Society took in mistreated pit bulls on an almost-daily basis. Grinstead said she received dogs with bones protruding through their skin, muscle tendons hanging from their limbs, and infected wounds covered in pus.
"It was obvious they were victims of dog fights," said Grinstead.
Before the year 2000, there wasn't much the City of Lawrence could do to stop dog fighting, according to Anthony Barnett, owner of Home Sweet Home Dog Resort, 2140 Haskell Avenue, who specializes in raising pit bulls. Barnett said the sport was much more organized than it is today and almost impossible to access.
"It used to be like infiltrating a drug cartel," said Barnett. "Dog fighting organizations are extremely close-knit groups."
The number of injured pit bulls dropped the year after Lawrence officials enacted the Dangerous Dog Ordinance in 2000. The ordinance requires that if the public perceives a dog as a threat to society, the owner must keep it heavily restrained. When an owner does not comply with the ordinance, officials can confiscate the dog and take the case to court. If the owner is found guilty, the dog is euthanized.
Since the 2000 ordinance was enacted, Grinstead said it has helped to bring about 30 cases of animal cruelty involving dog fighting to civil court.
Even though the 2000 ordinance helped identify dozens of dangerous animals and their owners, the Lawrence Humane Society still received more than 100 injured pit bulls in 2001.
Douglas County took a bigger bite out of the local dog fighting industry with the passage of its Vicious Dog Ordinance in 2003. The ordinance outlawed equipment that could be used to train dogs to fight, including jump cords, tread mills, weight harnesses, and injection steroids. The ordinance also allowed the search of property belonging to those possessing such equipment and permitted the houses of suspected dog fighters to be inspected.
"The Vicious Dog Ordinance gave us a way to get in the door," said Grinstead. "Before, it was almost impossible to investigate people we suspected of dog fighting."
The 2003 ordinance proved to be successful. Grinstead and her staff took in less than 25 battle-weary pit bulls in 2005.
The animals received another victory in July 2006, when she hired a lobbyist and pushed the Kansas Legislature to increase the crime of animal cruelty from a misdemeanor to a felony.
Grinstead said she accomplished this by demonstrating the positive correlation between people who beat their dogs and people convicted of violent crimes. After receiving thousands of e-mails from across the state and hearing hundreds of witnesses testify to that claim, the Senate voted unanimously to increase the severity of the law.
Today, those convicted of animal cruelty in Kansas must serve at least 30 days in jail and pay a fine ranging from $500 to $5,000. Since the tougher penalties were enacted, the Lawrence Humane Society has received only three injured pit bulls.
Stacy Hendricks, director of operations at the Topeka Helping Hands Humane Society, 2625 Rochester Road, said she was also very pleased with the new, tougher punishment for dog fighting in Kansas.
"Before it was just a slap on the wrist," said Hendricks. "Now we're hoping to see harsher punishments for these crimes."
In early July, President George Bush signed a bill that made dog fighting a federal crime. Wyoming and Idaho are now the only states in which dog fighting remains a misdemeanor.