HARTSVILLE, SC (WBTW) – Concerned members of the community met with leaders in Darlington County Monday night to try and take a bite out of dogfighting.
“Those who are responsible will be cited for it and prosecuted,”
Strong words from Darlington County Sheriff candidate Tony Chavis, echoing the hopes of those gathered at Oak Manor in Hartsville Monday night.
The meeting was organized by several concerned citizens with hopes that those coming into office will have a clear start on issues close to the hearts of the people.
Representatives from the Darlington County Humane Society were on hand to share statistics on the dogfighting problem in the U.S. as well as here in South Carolina. According to the Humane Society, each year nearly 250,000 animals are stolen or bought to be used in dogfighting.
“It’s basically organized crime,” said Patricia Tomlinson. She hopes to form a task force along with community members, animal lovers, and law enforcement to bring that number as close to zero as possible.
“People need to be held accountable,” said Tomlinson. “We want to work with them and assist them to make their jobs successful.”
Tony Chavis, a candidate for Darlington County Sheriff as well as County Council candidate Lewis Brown both agree something must be done.
“We need to educate the county and all members of county council of the negative impact,” said Brown. “There’s a huge monetary impact.”
“If you abuse or neglect your animals, you’ll probably see the Darlington County Sheriff’s Department respond and take action against you,” Chavis said.
animals…you’ll probably see the darlington county sheriff’s department respond and take action against you.”
