Animal Rights Group Sues Police Over Lax Enforcement Against Kapparot Ritual

As the Jewish High Holidays approach, animal rights groups in California are again (see prior posting) attempting to stop the practice of using chickens for the pre-Yom Kippur ritual of kapparot. The complaint (full text) in Animal Protection and Rescue League v. City of Los Angeles, (CD CA, filed 9/12/2017), contends that the the Los Angeles and Irvine police departments are violating the Establishment Clause by "actively protecting, encouraging and ratifying illegal conduct solely because it is motivated by religious belief." Plaintiffs say they want to make citizens' arrests of those who kill and discard chickens in their presence, but that police are deployed in large numbers to prevent such arrests. They say that under California Penal Code Secs. 597(a) and 599c, all intentional killing of animals, except when used for food, are outlawed. Orange County Register reports on the lawsuit. [Thanks to Steven H. Sholk for the lead.]