João Moura addresses court, charged with 18 counts of mistreating domestic animals
Bullfighting horseman João Moura has admitted ‘part’ of the blame for starving his greyhounds, and leaving them in their own excrement to the point that their rescue shocked the nation.
Addressing Portalegre court yesterday, where he was being tried on 18 counts of mistreating domestic animals, Moura explained he had been going through “a not so good” economic phase in his life at the time of the incident.
Whatever else he may have wanted to say was cut short after his defence lawyer interrupted. There was “an exchange of words” and Moura “fell silent”, writes Lusa.
Portugal’s public prosecutor meantime is calling for the well-known figure in the bullfighting world to be convicted on all counts of animal mistreatment.
Animal rights associations have gone further, suggesting a sentence of life imprisonment as well as a ban on contact with domestic animals.
The court’s decision is due to be released in one week’s time, on January 24 at 14.00.
Certainly, public prosecutors have no doubt of Moura’s guilt, having presented detailed reports after hearing the witnesses in the case.
Defence lawyer Luís Semedo however criticised the animal rights’ association’s calls for life imprisonment, pointing out that animal rights activists are biased, seeing his client as representing “everything” they “abhor”, namely bullfighting, “an activity in which the defendant is a professional”.
Speaking to reporters after what was the final session of the trial, Luís Semedo stressed that he would wait for the verdict to be read, but hopes the court will “be able to decree and assume the unconstitutionality of the law” that criminalises his client.
Yet again, this promises to be a case where those prosecuted for mistreating animals will seek to appeal any conviction on the basis of rulings by the Constitutional Court that have already reversed several convictions in the lower courts.
The lawyer representing SOS Animal has said his clients “will wait calmly, but our conviction is that very strong evidence has been produced.”
Moura was arrested by GNR police almost four years ago. Eighteen dogs were removed from his property in Monforte, Portalegre, almost all in a skeletal state. A number had serious diseases and conditions.The bullfighter was made an official suspect and said at the time: ““I did not kill anyone. I did not steal from anyone. I have not treated my animals badly. Some were thin, but I did not treat them badly”.
One dog, almost eight years old, who “suffered from acute hepatic and renal insufficiency”, as well as having a “cachectic (skeletal) state” and “deep cuts in the metacarpal area with no signs of healing”, ended up dying on the day of the rescue from Moura’s property.
The ‘good news’ is that the remaining dogs were all coaxed back into full health at animal shelters, and successfully rehomed. ND
Source material: LUSA
