|
Cover Stories Spring 2003 Ex-Kennel Operator Convicted of Felony Theft in Greyhound Research Case Hudson, Wisconsin: Daniel Shonka, a former kennel owner at the now-defunct St. Croix Meadows Greyhound Park, was convicted Feb. 6, of one count of felony theft and one count of misdemeanor theft in St. Croix County Circuit Court after pleading no contest to the charges in a plea bargain. Circuit Court Judge Scott Needham sentenced Shonka to nine months in jail on the misdemeanor charge and ordered him to pay $110,000 in fines and restitution. Needham also imposed the maximum jail sentence of two years on the felony charge but suspended that sentence in favor of four years' probation. If Shonka fails to comply with the terms of probation, he will serve two years in prison on the felony charge. Shonka's nine-month prison sentence is scheduled to begin on or before April 6; he will be allowed to serve the time in an Iowa jail. The Wisconsin Attorney General's office prosecuted the case following a 20-month investigation led by the state Department of Justice. Authorities charged that Shonka, 50, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, sold more than 1,000 racing greyhounds to Guidant Corp., a St. Paul, Minn. cardiac-research facility, from 1996 to 2000. The complaint said Shonka received at least $374,000 in the sale of the dogs. According to the complaint, the dogs' owners thought the animals either were still racing out of Shonka's racing kennel at the St. Croix track in Hudson or had been adopted. Shonka's adoption program was a cover for his dog-selling business. Susan Netboy, director of the Greyhound Protection League, said Shonka's penalties are too lenient. "I don't think they begin to compensate for the large number of deaths and the suffering of the dogs." Netboy secured the release of 108 greyhounds still alive in the lab; 978 greyhounds died in terminal experiments. In early 2000, Shonka was operating a racing kennel at the St. Croix track in Hudson, Wisconsin, and an adoption program from his Cedar Rapids home. He also was a member of the National Greyhound Association (NGA), a scout for the Philadelphia Eagles football team, and a federally licensed Class B animal dealer. The Wisconsin Division of
Gaming began its 20-month investigation of Shonka after information obtained
by GPL was made public April 4, 2000. Shonka has since been expelled from
the NGA. He still faces federal charges on multiple violations of the
Animal Welfare Act by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Sources: Wisconsin State Journal:
Andy Hall, |