After exhausting his appeals all the way to the state Supreme Court, the owner of the Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete has no legal remedy left save one: do an end run around the high court via a bill that would grandfather his "right" to keep a 550-pound tiger enclosed in a pen at his roadside business.
Tiger Truck Stop owner Michael Sandlin has lost at the district, appellate and Supreme Court level in his bid to keep Tony, a 550-pound tiger, at his business. A bill in the state Senate would grandfather in Sandlin and allow him to keep the animal. Sandlin has also fought back with a website and Facebook campaign.
After exhausting his appeals all the way to the state Supreme Court, the owner of the Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete has no legal remedy left save one: do an end run around the high court via a bill that would grandfather his "right" to keep a 550-pound tiger enclosed in a pen at his roadside business.
In the hopper at the Legislature's upper chamber is Senate Bill 250 by Port Allen GOP Sen. Rick Ward. The bill amends current state law, which exempts universities like LSU from keeping live animals as mascots, and would effectively grandfather Michael Sandlin's tiger, Tony, by adding to the existing law with the caveat, "Such rules shall also provide for permits for certain institutions and for owners who can prove previous ownership. Previous ownership shall include persons who obtained their animal by lawful means and continuously possessed their animal since August 15, 2006."
Matthew Liebman, the senior attorney for the Animal Legal Defense Fund, which successfully fought Sandlin in court after compelling the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to revoke his license, says in a statement to The IND that his group is watching the bill closely:
ALDF opposes SB 250, which would expand the exemptions to Louisiana's ban on private possession of big cats. This is yet another delay tactic by Michael Sandlin and the Tiger Truck Stop. LSU is already exempted from the current law, so the only purpose of this new bill is to try to exempt Tony the tiger from the law. Louisiana needs a strong and robust prohibition on captive wildlife exhibition to protect animal welfare and public safety, and there is no reason for adding exemptions to the existing law. We've worked hard to get Tony to a reputable and accredited sanctuary, where he deserves to live out his life.