House Votes to Criminalize Interstate ‘Crush Video’ Sales

WASHINGTON — Spurred by a Ventura County case, the House on Tuesday approved a bill that would make it a federal crime to profit from the interstate sale of videos depicting animal cruelty.

The bill is targeted at a growing industry of “crush videos,” which generally show women in bare feet or spiked heels crushing small animals such as baby mice, birds, kittens and puppies.

“What do [serial killer] Ted Bundy and [Unabomber] Ted Kaczynski have in common? They tortured animals before killing people,” said Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley), the bill’s author.

The measure, which now will go to the Senate, was approved on a 372-42 vote.

Crush videos have become a multimillion-dollar business, with more than 2,000 titles selling for $30 to $300 on the Internet, the bill’s supporters said.

Gallegly introduced the bill after the Ventura County district attorney ran into problems pursuing a crush video producer under the state’s animal cruelty law.

Federal legislation is necessary, supporters said, because it is difficult to prove that the cruelty featured in the video occurred within the statute of limitations--three years in California, said Tom Connors, a Ventura County deputy district attorney. It also is difficult to identify the individual in the videos because only legs and feet usually are shown.

Under the federal legislation, anyone creating, selling or possessing a video or other materials depicting animal cruelty for commercial purposes and marketed through interstate commerce would be subject to federal prosecution, with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

Opponents said that the bill would intrude on 1st Amendment guarantees of freedom of expression, constitute an unnecessary federal intrusion into state affairs and divert prosecutors from more serious offenses.

If California prosecutors are having difficulty, “then the remedy is not to come running to Congress,” said Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.). He said the remedy is to strengthen state animal cruelty laws.

“We don’t need more federal laws,” said Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas). “We can’t even enforce the ones we have.”

Critics also said the bill could limit films on hunting or bullfighting and even TV ads on the killing of cockroaches. Supporters said that the measure would deal only with acts prohibited by state animal cruelty laws.

In response to 1st Amendment concerns, Gallegly amended the bill to exempt depictions if they have “serious religious, political, scientific, educational, journalistic, historical or artistic value.”

Several members of the House Judiciary Committee said they were convinced of the need for the legislation after viewing a crush video.

“There is something to the value of the federal government making a moral statement that this is abhorrent and intolerable behavior,” said Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas).

The bill has drawn strong backing from animal rights activists, including actors Doris Day, Mickey Rooney and Loretta Swit.

The videos first came to the attention of Ventura County prosecutors last year after the Humane Society of the United States notified authorities about a Thousand Oaks man who was producing and distributing crush tapes.

Ventura County authorities investigated but ran up against the statute of limitations--the tape was made in 1992.

But in Los Angeles County, prosecutors are pursuing a case against Diane Chaffin, 35, of La Puente, and Gary Thomason, 48, of Anaheim, who have been accused of making a crush video in the San Gabriel Valley.

During their preliminary hearing, a video was shown of a woman in high heels stomping on mice and rats, according to a district attorney’s spokeswoman.

Chaffin and Thomason are scheduled to appear in Pomona Superior Court on Thursday on three counts each of felony animal cruelty charges. They have pleaded not guilty.

Both were arrested after an Internet sting conducted for a year with the aid of an undercover Ventura County district attorney’s investigator.