Youngstown, Ohio - This morning, former Palm Bay, Fla., police officer Blayne Doyle sent an urgent letter, on behalf of PETA, to Youngstown Police Chief Jimmy Hughes urging him to bar the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus from bringing dangerous elephants to Youngstown when the circus visits the city on March 7-9. Doyle's plea stems from a tragic incident in 1992, when, while on duty, he was forced to shoot to death an elephant named Janet after she went on a rampage while giving a "ride" to a mother and five children.
Doyle recently viewed video footage taken by PETA and wrote to Chief Hughes, "I was alarmed at how little control the handlers had over these huge animals and even more surprised that, given the lack of control, they continued to walk them into residential neighborhoods." The video shows several incidents where Ringling elephants became agitated while being walked through residential streets. It also shows elephants who do not respond to handlers' commands or wander off course and are aggressively poked and jabbed with steel-tipped bullhooks that dig into the elephants' tender skin--sometimes causing them to squeal in pain and bleed.
"The years of frustration and beatings that these elephants have endured at the hands of Ringling have turned them into ticking time bombs," says PETA Director Debbie Leahy. "The only way to ensure the safety of the city's residents and avoid another incident like the one in Palm Bay is to prohibit Ringling from bringing these animals to town in the first place."
PETA will protest the circus on opening night. For more information and to view the video footage, please visit PETA's Web site Circuses.com .
Blayne Doyle's letter to Youngstown Police Chief Jimmy Hughes follows.
February 25, 2008
Chief Jimmy F. Hughes Youngstown Police Department 116 West Boardman St. Youngstown, OH 44503
Dear Chief Hughes:
My name is Blayne Doyle, and I am a retired Palm Bay, Fla., police officer. In 1992, I was forced to shoot and kill a rampaging elephant named Janet, who had a mother and five children riding on her back when she ran amok. I am writing because I believe that there is compelling evidence that Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus has not gone far enough to ensure that the public is protected from especially dangerous elephants.
In early January, Ringling took a 5½-year-old male elephant named P.T. off the road after he allegedly attacked and injured a trainer, sending the trainer to the hospital. However, other unpredictable elephants remain on the road. The enclosed DVD shows disturbing footage of Ringling's elephants--several of whom are quite agitated--as they wander several feet away from handlers, walk onto residential lawns, stop and turn around in the middle of the street, nearly walk into a parked car, and generally ignore handlers' commands. Such unresponsiveness all too often results in the elephants being mishandled--including being struck with steel-tipped bullhooks. According to former Ringling employees, it is widely known internally that two elephants, Luna and Tonka, pose a particular danger. I urge you to notify the circus that these elephants cannot be brought to Youngstown.
When I reviewed this footage, I almost had to shut off the video. The cries from the elephants were the same as Janet's as she ran from the gunfire in Palm Bay. I was alarmed at how little control the handlers had over these huge animals and even more surprised that, given the lack of control, they continued to walk them into residential neighborhoods. If Ringling's handlers lose control of one of the elephants, they would more than likely lose control over most of them. The elephants would be loose, scared, and almost unstoppable, running through yards with people everywhere. Please keep in mind that I ran out of ammunition trying to contain just one rampaging elephant. I fear that not even all the ammunition carried by all the police officers working on a given day would be able to stop several rampaging elephants.
Thank you for your consideration. Removing elephants who pose a danger to the public would go a long way toward protecting your community.
Sincerely, Blayne Doyle
Here is the video that Blayne Doyle refers to in his letter--
awww thats great that hes trying most peta videos don't make me cry but the only one that brought my eyes to tears was when the elephant was being shot to death
-salena
You are mistaken about the sounds the elephants are making in the video. Chirpping, trumpiting, and ear flapping are signs of extreme excitement and happiness. Try and understand what you decide to show to others so you are making educated posts, not fictional ones.
numnum, quoting Officer Blayne Doyle,
"The cries from the elephants were the same as Janet's as she ran from the gunfire in Palm Bay." I find it hard to believe that the elephant who was gunned down in Fl., was happy while being shot.
Also, according to several other elephant experts who have viewed this video also agree that the sounds/trumps, etc are sounds of frustration, stress.
Not to mention Ringling Bros. puts people in danger every time they walk the elephants through a city because as the video shows, if an elephant want to break away from the 'line' there is nothing the Ringling handlers can do to stop them.
Jason how do you know Officer Blayne Doyle is refrencing this exact video?
And who exactly are the "several other elephant experts"?
There are risks in everything we do every minute of our lives. Some of them are imposed on us and others, and sometimes we expose ourselves to them. There are dangers lurking everywhere!
Nummum,
Considering that I took most of the footage in that video and the org that I work for is the org that sent Officer Doyle the footage for his comments - I have first hand knowledge of the video Officer Doyle viewed.
Just because danger lurks around the corner doesn't mean we should ignore warning signs when we see them.
Jason, you still are evading my question, "Who exactly are the 'several other elephant experts'" that you refrence in your first comment to me?