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Deputy Marshal JOHN COBY II, who shot and killed his K9 partner Hawk, is now suing City of Tombstone and its Marshal's Office

- Arizona, USA -


On the early morning of November 19, 2024, the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office was alerted to a shooting involving Tombstone Deputy Marshal JOHN COBY II (pictured) at the Tombstone Marshal’s Office and multiple units responded to the scene.


The Cochise County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release that upon arrival, officers found COBY in the upstairs bathroom with his 2 ½ -year-old Belgian Malinois K9 partner Hawk deceased outside the door.


According to the press release, from an initial investigation it emerged that COBY and K9 Officer Hawk were working on the nightshift and shortly after 5:00 a.m., K9 Officer Hawk “attacked his handler.”


COBY said that K9 Officer Hawk “latched onto his leg and would not let go, causing serious ankle/leg injury”, stated the release. COBY further said that he was able to get into the bathroom and partially close the door in an attempt to release K9 Officer Hawk’s grip on his leg. According to COBY, when that failed, he shot K9 Officer Hawk killing him.


K9 Officer Hawk was transferred to a facility for a necropsy.


COBY was airlifted to a Tucson hospital for treatment of his leg injuries before being released later in the evening.


At the time of the incident, the sheriff’s office said that COBY remained off-duty on medical leave during the investigation.


Let’s forward to February 2025.


On February 3, 2025, Tombstone Marshal Jim Adams issued a press release announcing that the detectives from the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office concluded the following:


• “There is nothing in this investigation that indicates to me John was abusive toward Hawk or premeditated his death.”

• “There is nothing that indicates John intentionally provoked Hawk to attack him.”

• “John Coby II was justified in using deadly physical force against Hawk as it was immediately necessary to protect himself against Hawk’s attack.”


The press release goes on to state: “The County Attorney’s Office concurred with the findings, citing that ‘The shooting of K9 Officer Hawk by Deputy Marshal Coby appears to be entirely justified’ and that ‘Felony prosecution is declined’.”


According to the press release by Marshal Adams, the investigation revealed that K9 Officer Hawk “had previously been assigned to the US Border Patrol as a drug detection K9 and had committed several prior unprovoked attacks on handlers with at least one requiring hospitalization and surgery (June 4, 2024). Hawk was then released to a third-party vendor, who was reportedly told about the dog’s history. That vendor then transferred Hawk to KnightWatch K9 and reportedly failed to disclose those facts, hence, our office was equally not aware of them when the dog came to us.”


The press release further stated that the veterinarian who tested K9 Officer Hawk following the attack on the BP handler concluded “an assumed acquired behavior disorder diagnosis” might be warranted, if the pain medications K9 Officer Hawk was given for a possible injury they thought he might have at the time, failed to mitigate the issue.


While Marshal Adams expressed gratitude “for the professional diligence of the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office in conducting a comprehensive and objective investigation,” as reported by KVOA, COBY recently filed a $1.5 million Notice of Claim against the City of Tombstone and related parties, “alleging negligence and misconduct that resulted” in K9 Officer Hawk’s attack on him.


In summary, the claim stresses the alleged failure of the City and associated parties to provide a safe working environment and accuses KnightWatch K9, operated by Constance Baker, for failing to vet K9 Officer Hawk before he joined the Marshal’s Office.


Marshal Jim Adams resigned from his position days before the Claim.


I reached out to the Marshal’s Office to request a photo of K9 Officer Hawk but they declined to provide it to me and said: “Unfortunately, we are under civil litigation about the incident and as such, we do not comment, or voluntarily distribute any information regarding the matter until the situation has been resolved.”


At the end of all this, once again, an innocent animal paid with his precious life at the expense of human mistakes and negligence!


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Voice For Us Disclaimer: Please note that details may be removed or new information added should updates become available.


COBY’s photo shared from the Tombstone Marshal’s Office Facebook post





Max Mara Fashion Group, the Italian fashion house, finally goes fur-free

- Italy -

 

Max Mara Fashion Group, the Italian fashion house, has finally announced what thousands of people have been waiting to hear for a very long time!

 

Following countless global campaigns, protests, emails, petitions, phone calls, media posts, and street actions in front of Max Mara stores all over Europe, in an internal memo to staff, Max Mara said, “The Company does not sell, online nor in any of its physical retail locations, any products made with fur, nor is there the intention to introduce any products made with fur into any upcoming collections of Max Mara Fashion Group brands.”

 

Fur Free Alliance reports that this was confirmed by a Max Mara executive, who added:

“Max Mara, including the MMFG and any subsidiaries, has adopted a fur-free policy and has no intention of introducing fur into any upcoming collection for any of the MMFG brands.”

 

As reported by FOUR PAWS, the Fur Free Alliance and a coalition of more than fifty animal protection organizations from over thirty-five countries, “launched a global campaign during fashion weeks in February 2024 in New York City, London, Milan, and Paris urging the Italian fashion giant to adopt a fur-free policy. The campaign also saw more than 270,000 emails, 5,000 phone calls and countless social media posts delivering a clear message asking Max Mara to take the leap into a fur-free future.”

 

Many brands, such as Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci, Prada, Valentino, Versace and many others, take a clear stance against real fur. Max Mara, however, kept selling products with real fur.

 

In February 2024, Humane Society International/Europe and LAV flew a hot-air balloon over Max Mara’s headquarters in the city of Reggio Emilia during Milan Fashion Week, displaying a fur-free message.

 

Together with Fur Free Alliance, FOUR PAWS joined a global campaign during fashion week season from February to March 2024 to convince Max Mara to move toward a fur-free future.

FOUR PAWS and other NGOs protested in front of Max Mara stores in more than twenty European cities. Max Mara has always refused to even discuss the issue.

 

Following the #FurFreeMaxMara campaign, the company removed fur items from Max Mara Fashion Group’s websites but remained silent on ending its support for fur cruelty. The group even disabled all comments on its Instagram channels.

 

Humane Society International reported some alarming fur facts which I have copied below:

 

·         Tens of millions of animals suffer and die each year in the global fur trade. The majority of the animals killed for fur are reared in barren battery cages on fur farms.

·         Fur farming has been banned in 21 European countries – the 15 Member States of Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Slovakia, Slovenia plus Bosnia and Herzegovina, Guernsey, Norway, United Kingdom, North Macedonia and Serbia. In addition, two countries (Switzerland and Germany) have implemented strict regulations which have effectively brought fur farming to an end and three countries (Denmark, Sweden, Hungary) have imposed measures that have ended the farming of certain species.  Mink farming has also been banned in the Canadian province of British Colombia. Political discussion of a ban is underway in Bulgaria, Romania and Sweden.

·         Israel became the first country to ban fur sales, in 2021. In the United States, fur sales are banned in the state of California as well as ins 16 towns or cities. Political discussion on a fur import ban is underway in Switzerland

·         Mink on almost 488 fur farms across 13 countries in Europe and North America have been found to be infected with COVID-19. Millions of farmed mink, in countries such as Denmark and the Netherlands, were ordered to be killed on public health grounds. Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) has been found on 72 fur farms (one in Spain, 71 in Finland) to date. Around 500,000 animals, including mink, arctic fox, red fox, raccoon dogs and sable, have been ordered to be killed on public health grounds.

  

P.J Smith, director of fashion policy at Humane Society International and the Humane Society of the United States, said: “Congratulations to Max Mara for joining so many other fashion brands and retailers that have already taken a stand against the cruel fur trade. Activists around the world came together to ask Max Mara to do the right thing, and they listened, making it clear fur has no place in fashion. Let’s celebrate this win for animals and a fur-free future!” 

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Voice For Us Disclaimer: This story is sourced from official news outlets. Links included.

 




Family of late French actor Alain Delon refuse to put down his dog

- France -

 

How many of you have watched his movies and how many ladies among you found him handsome?

 

88-year-old French actor Alain Fabien Maurice Marcel Delon, simply known by his stage name Alain Delon, passed away on August 18, 2024.

 

A request expressed by Mr. Delon regarding his dog, a 10-year-old Belgian Malinois named Loubo whom he adopted in 2014 from a shelter, sparked an outcry from animal rights activists.

 

In a 2018 interview with Paris Match, Mr. Delon said he wanted Loubo euthanized and buried with him in the cemetery of his home in the village of Douchy in the Loiret. He said: “He’s my end of life dog … I love him like a child. He misses me when I’m not there.” He then explained: “I’ve had 50 dogs in my life, but I have a particular relationship with this one. If I die before him, I’ll ask the veterinarian for us to leave together. ... I’d prefer that to knowing that he would let himself die on my tomb amid so much suffering.”

 

Mr. Delon created a chapel in the cemetery of his home containing the remains of at least thirty-five (35) of his dogs.

 

After Mr. Delon’s death, animal rights activists and concerned citizens raised the alarm about Loubo’s fate.

 

Following criticism from animal welfare groups, Mr. Delon’s family confirmed on August 20, 2024, that they would not be granting Mr. Delon’s controversial dying wish.

 

On the same day, the Brigitte Bardot Foundation, a prominent French animal rights group founded by the famed French film star, who was close with Mr. Delon, said in a post on X that Mr. Delon’s relatives had confirmed that Loubo “has his home and his family” and will not be euthanized.

 

France’s Society for the Protection of Animals welcomed the family’s decision.

 

According to The Associated Press, SPA President Guillaume Sanchez told the news agency: “ ‘Our phone lines were saturated’ with calls by people worried about the dog.”

He also said that while Loubo “will probably be very sad to have lost the affection of Mr. Delon,” “…we are totally against the idea that anyone euthanizes an animal for this reason, Delon or no Delon. ... Organizations that work to protect animals want society to develop awareness that an animal is an individual, separate being.”

 

Mr. Delon was a longtime friend of the Brigitte Bardot Foundation and helped raise money for its causes.

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Voice For Us Disclaimer: This story is sourced from official news outlets. Links included.

Please note that details may be removed or new information added should updates become available.

 




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