Eliminate "Lobster Zone" Games

FROM Orange County People for Animals (OCPA)

Orange County People for Animals contacted THE BEACH CLUB SPORTS BAR and SAN PEDRO FISH MARKET and requested they remove their "Lobster Zone" Games by September 3, 2010. (See letters below.) Both have failed to remove the "games."

Contact both establishments and tell them to remove these cruel contraptions.

Contact Orange County People for Animals (OCPA) for upcoming protest demo information.

CONTACT

The Beach Club Sports Bar
phone (562) 494-7593

Steve Hoy
Owner/CFO
The Beach Club Sports Bar
email

Ben Goldberg
Owner/Operations Manager
The Beach Club Sports Bar
email

Mark Ziegenhagen
Owner/General Manager
The Beach Club Sports Bar
email

Dave Sissons
Owner
The Beach Club Sports Bar
email

San Pedro Fish Market
phone (310) 832-4251
email

INFORMATION / TALKING POINTS

LETTER TO BEACH CLUB SPORTS BAR

CONCERNED CITIZENS FOR CRUSTACEANS
18032-C Lemon Drive, #623
Yorba Linda, CA 92886
(714) 584-4321

August 26, 2010

Mr. Stephen Michael Hoy
Managing Member
Beach Club Sports Bar & Grill, LLC
5755 East Pacific Coast Highway
Long Beach, CA 90803

C/o Mr. Thomas A. Ramsey
Registered Agent
Beach Club Sports Bar & Grill, LLC
111 W. Ocean Blvd.
Long Beach, CA 90802

Re: Lobster Zone Game Device

Dear Mr. Hoy:

We are writing on behalf of a number of concerned citizens and animal advocacy groups in Long Beach and surrounding areas to request the immediate removal of the Lobster Zone “game” device from the Beach Club. This device, which torments lobsters held captive in a tank for the amusement of patrons, is both cruel and unlawful.

Lobsters are intelligent animals capable of experiencing fear and pain. In the European Union, lobsters are treated as in the same class as dogs and cats with regard to capacity for suffering.

Moreover, lobsters are solitary animals who prefer to burrow under sand and do not enjoy socializing with other lobsters. In the Lobster Zone tank, these animals are denied the ability to burrow, forced to interact with other lobsters in close quarters, and subjected to the constant, threatening menace of a huge claw.

Observation of the Lobster Zone game in your establishment shows that the lobsters consistently cluster together on one side of the tank, as far away from the claw as possible. Given their preference for solitude and space, their choice to huddle together demonstrates clearly that they fear and routinely avoid the claw.

California Penal Code Section 597(b) makes it a crime to “torment,” subject to “needless suffering,” “inflict unnecessary cruelty upon,” or “in any manner abuse” an animal. Violators of this statute may be charged with a felony and fined up to $20,000. In light of lobsters’ capacity for pain, stress and fear, their preference for solitude and burrowing, and their demonstrated terror of the huge claw in the Lobster Zone, the lobsters used in this “game” are clearly being tormented,” “abused,” and subjected to “needless suffering” within the meaning of Penal Code §597(b).

Moreover, California Penal Code Section 597t makes it a misdemeanor to fail to provide a confined animal with “adequate exercise area.” When not in captivity, lobsters travel up to a mile on a typical night. The space in the Lobster Zone tank does not allow them to move more than several feet in any direction, nor are they capable of moving freely while in a state of constant fear. Further, during a recent visit to your restaurant, we counted 11 lobsters tightly clustered on one side of the Lobster Zone tank. This excessive overcrowding means that lobsters forced against the tank walls have virtually no ability to move, a further violation of Penal Code Section 597t.

Finally, this game violates Long Beach city ordinances 6.16.130 and 6.16.150, which prohibit a restaurant from keeping live animals on the premises.

Numerous animal advocacy groups are opposed to the Beach Club’s Lobster Zone game, including People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), In Defense of Animals, Last Chance for Animals, Orange County People for Animals, Compassion in Action, Animal Rescue Media Education, Band of Mercy, United Animal Advocates of Los Angeles, All-Creatures.org, Cease Animal Torture, Irvine Students Against Animal Cruelty and Concerned Citizens for Crustaceans. These organizations, whose collective support base numbers in the millions, routinely mobilize supporters to oppose cruel practices by protesting, picketing, leafleting and online advocacy through measures such as blogs, petitions, email blasts and posts on social networking sites.

Mr. Hoy, lobsters are intelligent, sentient animals capable of suffering, not inanimate toys or trinkets. We believe you were likely unaware of the needs and capacities of lobsters when you decided to place the Lobster Zone machine in your establishment. We assume you were also unaware of the various state and city laws that this machine violates. We hope now that we have brought these issues to your attention, you will decide to remove this game. Incidentally, because of the concerns expressed above, and the disapproval expressed by patrons, many establishments across the country – including the Bull Bar in Long Beach – have opted to remove their Lobster Zone machines permanently. We hope you will do the same, and we are prepared to remove and re-home the lobsters immediately.

We’d appreciate the opportunity to meet with you at your earliest convenience to answer any questions and discuss the logistics of removing the machine and re-homing the lobsters. The animal protection groups listed above and their memberships are deeply committed to seeing this machine removed as soon as possible, and the lobsters in them handed over to us so that they may be safely re-homed at the earliest possible opportunity. To arrange a time for us to meet, or to advise us of your plans to remove the machine, please call (714) 584-4321 or email cglasser@gmail.com or dave@ocpausa.org. If we do not hear from you by September 3, 2010, we will assume you do not intend to respond, and we will proceed accordingly.

Thank you in advance for addressing this matter in a timely and compassionate manner.

Sincerely,

Carol L. Glasser
Shannon Keith, Esq.
David R. Simon, Esq.

LETTER TO SAN PEDRO FISH MARKET

CONCERNED CITIZENS FOR CRUSTACEANS
18032-C Lemon Drive, #623
Yorba Linda, CA 92886
(714) 584-4321

August 26, 2010

Mr. Thomas Carl Amalfitano
Owner
San Pedro Fish Market
Ports O Call Village
1190 Nigoya
San Pedro, CA 90731

Re: “The Love Maine Lobster Claw” Game Device

Dear Mr. Amalfitano:

We are writing on behalf of a number of concerned citizens and animal advocacy groups in San Pedro and surrounding areas to request the immediate removal of “The Love Maine Lobster Claw” game device from the San Pedro Fish Market. This device, which torments lobsters held captive in a tank for the amusement of patrons, is both cruel and unlawful.

Lobsters are intelligent animals capable of experiencing fear and pain. In the European Union, lobsters are treated as in the same class as dogs and cats with regard to capacity for suffering.

Moreover, lobsters are solitary animals who prefer to burrow under sand and do not enjoy socializing with other lobsters. In the lobster game tank, these animals are denied the ability to burrow, forced to interact with other lobsters in close quarters, and subjected to the constant, threatening menace of a huge claw.

Observation of the lobster game in your establishment shows that the lobsters consistently cluster together in one corner of the tank, as far away from the claw as possible. Given their preference for solitude and space, their choice to huddle together demonstrates clearly that they fear and routinely avoid the claw.

California Penal Code Section 597(b) makes it a crime to “torment,” subject to “needless suffering,” “inflict unnecessary cruelty upon,” or “in any manner abuse” an animal. Violators of this statute may be charged with a felony and fined up to $20,000. In light of lobsters’ capacity for pain, stress and fear, their preference for solitude and burrowing, and their demonstrated terror of the huge claw in the lobster game machine, the lobsters used in this game are clearly being “tormented,” “abused,” and subjected to “needless suffering” within the meaning of Penal Code §597(b).

Moreover, California Penal Code Section 597t makes it a misdemeanor to fail to provide a confined animal with “adequate exercise area.” When not in captivity, lobsters travel up to a mile on a typical night. The space in the lobster game tank does not allow them to move more than several feet in any direction, nor are they capable of moving freely while in a state of constant fear.

Numerous animal advocacy groups are opposed to your establishment’s lobster game, including People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), In Defense of Animals, Last Chance for Animals, Orange County People for Animals, Compassion in Action, Animal Rescue Media Education, Band of Mercy, United Animal Advocates of Los Angeles, All-Creatures.org, Cease
Animal Torture, Irvine Students Against Animal Cruelty and Concerned Citizens for Crustaceans. These organizations, whose collective support base numbers in the millions, routinely mobilize supporters to oppose cruel practices by protesting, picketing, leafleting and online advocacy through measures such as blogs, petitions, email blasts and posts on social networking sites.

Mr. Amalfitano, lobsters are intelligent, sentient animals capable of suffering, not inanimate toys or trinkets. We believe you were likely unaware of the needs and capacities of lobsters when you decided to place the game machine in your establishment. We assume you were also unaware of the state laws that this machine violates. We hope now that we have brought these issues to your attention, you will decide to remove this game. Incidentally, because of the concerns expressed above, and the disapproval expressed by patrons, many establishments across the country – including the Bull Bar in Long Beach – have opted to remove their lobster game machines permanently. We hope you will do the same, and we are prepared to remove and re-home the lobsters immediately.

We’d appreciate the opportunity to meet with you at your earliest convenience to answer any questions and discuss the logistics of removing the machine and re-homing the lobsters. Many animal protection organizations listed above and their memberships are deeply committed to seeing this machine removed as soon as possible, and the lobsters in them handed over to us so that they may be safely re-homed at the earliest possible opportunity. To arrange a time for us to meet, or to advise us of your plans to remove the machine, please call (714) 584-4321 or email cglasser@gmail.com or dave@ocpausa.org. If we do not hear from you by September 3, 2010, we will assume you do not intend to respond, and we will proceed accordingly.

Thank you in advance for addressing this matter in a timely and compassionate manner.

Sincerely,

Carol L. Glasser
Shannon Keith, Esq.
David R. Simon, Esq.

Thank you for everything you do for animals!