Charges sought in LA bull fight beef

ARTESIA, Calif., May 25 (UPI) -- An animal-rights group is urging Los Angeles prosecutors to file charges in an alleged illegal bull fight one of their investigators broke up over the weekend.

Animal Cruelty Investigations, an organization dedicated to the prevention of cruelty to farm animals, said the bull fight took place Saturday night at a festival in Artesia and involved a contest in which a bull was repeatedly jabbed and beaten with long sticks with nails on the end. An ACI agent put an end to the proceedings by marching to the center of the ring waving a badge and announcing the show was over.

"No animal should ever be made to suffer for so called entertainment," ACI spokeswoman Jane Garrison said in a written statement. "We hope the district attorney prosecutes this case to the fullest extent of the law and the City of Artesia makes this bull fight its last."

According to the ACI, the bull fight violated California animal cruelty laws, but the organizers of the event told KTLA-TV in Los Angeles that the animal wore padding to prevent injury.