A 麻豆精选 resident wants to see Leighton Labute punished for his alleged animal abuse and has planned a protest prior to his court appearance on Tuesday, Aug. 25.
The protest is planned for 1 p.m. outside the 麻豆精选 Law Courts, half an hour before 20-year-old Labute makes his second appearance in front of a judge since being charged earlier this year.
In May, Labute was charged with three counts of killing or injuring an animal and three counts of causing unnecessary pain or suffering to an animal, all of which stem from an alleged incident of him torturing hamsters in May 2019.
BoDreay Fraser organized the protest and said she wants to raise more awareness about what Labute has done, calling for a harsher punishment.
鈥淗e鈥檚 done a horrific thing and just the fact that he was released on bail and he鈥檚 still in the community鈥� with those gory allegations, and gory imagery on his social media, we just don鈥檛 want this to happen again,鈥� she said.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 want it to escalate. What鈥檚 next after this? If he just gets a slap on the wrist, what will happen after?鈥�
She said many in the community worry about what Labute could do, especially with the depictions of gore and sexual violence from his social media.
鈥淓ven if he just gets a slap on the wrist, at least (the protest) will give a scope of what the community feels and maybe it鈥檒l get him back in court with different charges or a different outcome,鈥� Fraser added.
She said there has been positive feedback so far but due to COVID-19 concerns, there may not be a big turnout.
鈥淓ven if there are only a few people out there, it will still make a difference.鈥�
Those interested in going to the protest are asked to bring masks and to observe proper physical distancing.
READ: 麻豆精选 man鈥檚 alleged hamster torture prompts animal rights group response
READ: 麻豆精选 man charged with animal cruelty
