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By JOYANNA LOVE/ Managing Editor

Seven residents of Verbena have been charged on conspiracy to violate the Animal Welfare Act and related charges, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

“William Colon ‘Big Jim’ Easterling, 75; Brent Colon Easterling, 37; Kassi Brook Easterling, 38; William Tyler Easterling, 29; George William ‘Billy’ Easterling, 55; and Thomas Glyn ‘Junior’ Williams, 33, were charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the Animal Welfare Act and to operate an illegal gambling business since at least 2018 and, along with Amber Nicole Easterling, 23, are charged with a substantive count of operating an illegal gambling business,” the U.S. Department of Justice press release states. “Each defendant is also charged with related substantive violations of the Animal Welfare Act. Tyler Easterling additionally is charged with a single violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act for capturing and killing a Great Horned Owl.”

The initial court appearance was held on Oct. 29 in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama.

The charges stem from the alleged operation of large-scale cockfighting, including “a cockfighting arena or ‘pit’ with stadium seating for approximately 150 people and several rings to host cockfights,” from January 2018 until 2021, according to the press release.

During a cockfight, birds have sharp objects attached to their legs in order to harm the other bird. The fight lasts until one bird dies or will no longer fight.

Three bird breeding operations owned by the Easterlings were stated as being specifically for raising roosters for fights.

“If convicted of conspiracy, Animal Welfare Act violations, or operating an illegal gambling business, the defendants each face a maximum penalty of five years in prison,” according to the press release. “The Migratory Bird Treaty Act has a maximum penalty of six months in prison. Upon conviction, a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General and Homeland Security Investigations are investigating the case.”

They would also be required to surrender birds, property and profits from the cockfights, if convicted, according to court documents.

Animal Wellness Action and the Animal Wellness Foundation had included information on “Brent Easterling as a major trafficker in fighting animals and implements” in a report in June 2020.

“The arrests today by federal authorities send an unmistakable signal to every major cockfighting operator that there is no more business as usual when it comes to involvement in the barbaric practice of cockfighting,” said Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action, in a press release. “The Easterlings have been known to us for a long time as cockfighting traffickers, but also are part of a far larger network of animal fighters in Alabama and throughout the United States that have made America the breeding ground for the global cockfighting industry.

The organization is calling for stronger penalties for cockfighting.

“If law enforcement is going to shut down illegal cockfighting in my home state of Alabama, that work can only be by the Dept. of Justice because cockfighting is effectively decriminalized in the Yellowhammer State,” noted Marty Irby, executive director of Animal Wellness Action and a native of Mobile.  “While dogfighting is a felony in Alabama, cockfighting warrants less in the way of penalties than a parking ticket, and the law hasn’t been updated since the 1800’s. The action of the United States in saying that it will not tolerate animal fighting operations will reverberate from Mobile to Huntsville and everywhere in between.”