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OH MY GOD!! we should give them capital punishmont!!!!11one

I think they should be shot in the head or castrated.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

Great idea, BeachBabe. That is perfectly fair, I would say. And yes, I agree that they should have to go to a shrink for the rest of their life, and the 50,000+ hours community service.

I think a good punishment would be to throw them around, poke them with sticks and put them in the tank with the large sharks and see how they feel. Oh and put them in an environment when they cant breathe and see how they like the feeling.

That's pretty harsh

Remember, cruel or not, the food chain is right and you are wrong:

Me
Barbara Streisand
Lion
Shark
Tony Danza

How sad is that. those little guys didnt even have a chance. They were so much fun to pet and watch when i was there a two years ago. Its not like they ever hurt anyone, might splash ya a little though

I think a good punishment would be to throw them around, poke them with sticks and put them in the tank with the large sharks and see how they feel. Oh and put them in an environment when they cant breathe and see how they like the feeling.

Hmmm... They need to be "reeducated"... maybe strapped down in a chair and poked for a few hours. Might work. That'd be before the community service so that they don't think it'd be fun to do that to the fishies.

Seeing as most abuse of people starts off earlier in life with cruelty to animals, I think something needs to be done about it before people who have done such things can rejoin society.

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This sort of stuff makes me cry
I can't comprehend what sort of person/child can do that without any remorse but I do know that they need to be "corrected" before they step up from helpless animals to human victims like some serial killers

OMG!! Those poor animals... I cannot believe that children could be so cruel. It's horrifying. I do hope all of them are required to have psychological evaluations and lots of therapy before they are ever released.

-Beth

i agree wat type of idiot would commit the same crime the same place sick not to how bout they pay double for the sharks and mabe swim around in the tank and act as a shark till they can get new ones sick sick sick

go terizing ants or something not fish (notg irls s ether) hehe

Last edited by fish1 at 15-Nov-2004 17:42

omg ELF, the group of people that, in lieu of the tiny amount of pollution made by a few dozen hummers at a dealership, instead decided it would be in the earths' best interest to... SET THEM ALL ON FIRE. Releasing one hundred times more toxic gases and detrimental fumes than all of the vehicles would have emitted from their exhaust in a 100 year lifespan.

GREAT JOB ELF. WAY TO LIBERATE THE EARTH!

Last week at the Aquarium of the Pacific, four teenages burtally murdered a STINGRAY, a BAMBOO SHARK&lt; and a NURSE SHARK. They also attempted to kill an adult ZEBRA SHARK.

If I could get my hands on them, I'd beat all to death. Well, not death, but they certainly would not be able to smell after I was done with them.

I say sick PETA on their pathetic butts. PETA would likely put them to use as slave labor, and then execute them.

Realisticly, they should spend the rest of their childhoods' in Juvenille Hall, each family should have to pay the combined price of all the creatures killed, and they should be banned from the city of Long Beach for all eternity. ]:|

What do you think of this terrible event?

Last edited by thegoldendojo at 14-Nov-2004 23:21

I think they should add a charge of criminal stupidity (well, not that that's a real crime) for returning to the aquarium.

And I like Babel's suggestion, but don't forget significant counselling - there's that old but frighteningly accurate statistic about adult serial killers having been childhood animal abusers. I'd like to see these kids assigned mandatory psychological appointments for, well, the rest of their lives, ideally.

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

I agree with TheGoldenDojo about PETA ...that or ELF

Putting them in juvi isn't gonna teach them anything, except for maybe to do it again from all the praise they'd get.

They can start by scrubbing each and every tank @the aquarium out with a toothbrush. They'll get minimum wage -any and all expenses for equiptment and they can reimburse the aquarium....then they can do it all again and reimburse all the people that paid to get in and see the sharks and didnt get to.....then a nice healthy dose of say 50,000 hours community service.

^_^
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Too sickening for words. I can't begin to understand why anyone would feel the need to be so cruel. Thirteen or not, they need to be locked away. It's only one small step from murdering sharks and rays like this to commiting such acts against people as well. Absolutely horrible.

Is it an outside aquarium?

Obviously in the UK, fish in outside pools get locked up indoors at night and in winter because of the cold. It just amazes me that an aquarium didnt have enough security to stop this or at least alert the authorities before the fish were found the next morning. What if they had been professionals after money or equipment, by the sounds of it they could have stolen a lot and noone would have paid a bit of notice.

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I like to think that whoever designed marine life was thinking of it as basically an entertainment medium. That would explain some of the things down there, some of the unearthly biological contraptions

I found more information on the Aquarium of the Pacific's website (somewhat lengthy):

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http://www.aquariumofpacific.org/NEWS_EVENTS/news.htm


Shark and Ray Deaths at Aquarium

November 12, 2004&#8212;The Aquarium of the Pacific is saddened to report that sometime Sunday night or Monday morning someone broke into the Aquarium's Shark Lagoon exhibit and injured or killed several animals. The Aquarium is extremely grateful for all the support it has received from the Long Beach Police Department, our members, colleagues, and people of all ages across the nation.

The following is the latest information regarding the shark and ray deaths that occurred earlier this week.

Several people illegally entered the Aquarium of the Pacific's Shark Lagoon area late Sunday night (November 7) or early Monday morning (November 8). Although this is not confirmed, it is thought that they tore through the mesh barrier on the fence to look through, and then at least one person scaled the eight-foot fence and opened the perimeter gate adjacent to Lorikeet Forest, allowing the others to enter.

The following is what occurred to our animals that night or morning:
-A cownose ray was removed from the larger touch pool, jabbed with a pipe-like object, and left on the concrete adjacent to the touch pool. Because rays have softer skin than sharks, this inflicted severe wounds. When the ray was found by Aquarium staff, it was dead.
-A bamboo shark was removed from the larger touch pool and thrown on the top of the exit enclosure of Lorikeet Forest. The shark was found by Aquarium staff near death. The shark died on Monday night.
-A nurse shark was removed from the large touch pool with one of the Aquarium&#8217;s nets. The nurse shark was dragged from the property and left behind bushes surrounding the Pier Point landing building that is across from the Aquarium. The staff searched the Aquarium grounds for the missing shark on Monday morning. When it was not found in any of the exhibits or on the grounds, a perimeter search was conducted with the shark being discovered in the bushes. The shark was dead when discovered.
-Zebra shark egg cases that were in the large touchpool were thrown into the large shark exhibit, except for two which were removed, slashed, and left adjacent to the touch pool. These two eggs were destroyed.
-Three bamboo sharks were removed from the large touch pool and dropped into the exhibit with the large sharks. These sharks were discovered by divers and placed back in the large touchpool. They appeared to have no injuries.
-A zebra shark in the exhibit with the large sharks has markings that appear to have come from jabs with a pipe or pole. Because this shark has very thick skin, this caused non-life threatening injuries.
-Various pieces of Aquarium equipment, including poles, nets and stanchions were found in the exhibit with the large sharks.

The individuals entered and left the Aquarium without being seen or heard by Aquarium staff. It is estimated that three people could have done everything above in as little as ten minutes.

The Aquarium staff notified the Long Beach Police Department on Monday morning, which responded immediately with an investigative team. The police investigative team conducted a thorough investigation and was extremely professional and supportive.

That afternoon the Aquarium responded to an inquiry from the Long Beach Press Telegram regarding the incident. The information given to the Press Telegram was limited in scope so as to not hinder the police investigation. At that time, we informed the Press Telegram that we would offer a $2,500 reward to anyone providing information that leads to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.

At approximately 9:00 p.m. on the evening of Monday, November 8 four individuals were found attempting to enter the Aquarium in the Shark Lagoon area. Aquarium staff notified Long Beach police that responded and arrested the four individuals.

At 1:00 p.m. Tuesday the Aquarium and the Long Beach police held a joint news conference. Perry Hampton, director of husbandry, led off with the official Aquarium statement:

"The Aquarium of the Pacific is saddened to report that sometime Sunday night or Monday morning someone broke into the Aquarium's Shark Lagoon exhibit and injured or killed several animals. We lost one of our nurse sharks and one cownose ray, and a bamboo shark that was injured passed away Monday night. Other animals were moved or injured but will survive.

Monday night at approximately 9:00 p.m. trespassers were found on the Aquarium grounds. The Aquarium contacted the Long Beach Police Department which made four arrests.

The Aquarium is extremely saddened by this terrible act of animal cruelty. These animals lived in our interactive touch pool's and personally touched the lives of millions of people who have visited the Aquarium. They were gentle animals that served as ambassadors inspiring wonder and respect for the ocean and its inhabitants. We are at a loss as to why anyone would commit such a cruel act on these animals."

Perry Hampton was followed by Sergeant David Cannan of Long Beach Police Department.

Sergeant Cannan stated that the Long Beach police had responded to a call from the Aquarium and arrested four suspects outside of the Aquarium on Monday night. After questioning, the Police Department strongly believes that three of those arrested had been involved in the previous evening&#8217;s break in and killings. The fourth is believed to have been brought along Monday night, but was not present Sunday. Those arrested were three thirteen year old males and one fourteen year old male. All are Long Beach residents. The three thirteen year olds are those who are believed to have been on site the previous evening.

Sergeant Cannan stated that there has not been a motive established for the killings. He very strongly stated that it was not believed to be gang related in terms of an initiation or any other gang activity. It was not yet known if the suspects had ever been to the Aquarium before. The boys are being held at a juvenile detention facility. Charges pending include felony animal cruelty, conspiracy to commit animal cruelty, and trespassing. No additional details could be disclosed due to the age of the suspects.

Aquarium CEO Dr. Jerry Schubel answered questions regarding Aquarium security:
The Aquarium has security personnel 24-hours a day that conduct regular rounds of the entire facility throughout the night. It also has 24-hour life support personnel who make regular rounds to check the exhibits throughout the night. The Aquarium is also equipped with security cameras that are monitored 24 hours a day by security. In over six years of operation, the Aquarium security protocols have proven effective in preventing a break in at our facility as there has never been an incident until Sunday night. based on these recent events, our operations staff is carefully looking at ways to increase our security to prevent an incident like this from ever happening again. Until these changes are made, there will be security personnel present all night every night in the Shark Lagoon area.

Dr. Schubel was asked about security cameras:
There is a camera out in Shark Lagoon, but in order to simulate natural lighting for the health of the animals, most of the lights go out after a certain hour, so it can be difficult for cameras to pick up detail. The tapes were being analyzed and reviewed. Because increased lighting would affect the animals, the Aquarium security team is currently working with an outside security company to look at other effective alternatives to increase security in Shark Lagoon.

Perry Hampton was asked about the health of the other animals in the exhibit, those that were moved or abused as well as the rest of the population:
He stated that the injuries were not serious and that all the animals were doing well. based on the interaction with guests, there does not appear to be any change in the behavior of the animals in Shark Lagoon. There is no evidence of the remaining animals being traumatized.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's office announced on Thursday, November 11 that the four teenage boys were charged in connection with the killing of two sharks and a ray.

Deputy District Attorney Sheila Callaghan, head of the Long Beach juvenile office, said all four minors were scheduled to be arraigned Friday morning in Department 246 of Long Beach Juvenile Court. All remain in juvenile custody. The 13-year-olds each are charged with two counts of commercial burglary, four counts of animal cruelty, two counts of vandalism and two counts of conspiracy to commit animal cruelty. All the charges are felonies. The 14-year-old is charged with one count each of commercial burglary and conspiracy to commit animal cruelty. Authorities said he was at the aquarium only once, while the other boys were there twice &#8211; Sunday and Monday. The Aquarium of the Pacific is supporting the Long Beach police and County DA 's office with any requests on this matter.

Next Steps:
As noted, the Aquarium is evaluating what changes need to be made in our security system. It is an unfortunate and unforeseen event, but it has changed the realities of our situation and we are acting accordingly.

-The Aquarium is already working with the Long Beach Unified School District to convene an essay forum with middle school students to try to come to some understanding of why children this age would do what they did and how it can be prevented in the future. We plan to have the results in a forum press event on Sunday, November 21.

-Criminal prosecution of the suspects is the responsibility of the district attorney. The Aquarium will support the needs of the Long Beach police department and county district attorney.

In closing, the Aquarium is incredibly grateful for the tremendous response and support from its members, government officials, corporations, and members of the public from across the country who have offered their sympathies and condolences. This has been a very difficult time for all staff members and especially so for those who care for the animals in Shark Lagoon. Your good wishes and support have helped so much in getting through a very difficult time. We look forward to creating an environment that helps to instill a sense of wonder, respect, and stewardship for the Pacific Ocean, its inhabitants, and ecosystems.


Last edited by AndyCLS at 15-Nov-2004 11:33

what did they do? And why weren't aquarium staff there to stop them?

Well, the aquarium was closed, so no staff to stop them. Here is the article.


"Four young teens have been arrested after the torture and killing of two sharks and a ray at a California aquarium.

Vandals broke into the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach Sunday night. When aquarium staff arrived Monday, they found debris in the shark tank and the cow-nose ray on the concrete pool deck.

A two-foot-long, striped bamboo shark was found dead in a bird exhibit and a three-foot-long nurse shark was found in the bushes. They had been stabbed or poked with plastic pipes.

An aquarium spokeswoman says the staff was "all very sickened" by what happened.

Police say three 13-year-olds and one 14-year-old were arrested while trying to break into the aquarium a second time Monday night. They're being held on suspicion of animal cruelty and trespassing."

what did they do? And why weren't aquarium staff there to stop them?

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I like to think that whoever designed marine life was thinking of it as basically an entertainment medium. That would explain some of the things down there, some of the unearthly biological contraptions

Dismember them and use them as chum.