A jury has convicted Canadian visitor Mitchell Fairbarn of animal cruelty after he removed a flamingo from its enclosure in Las Vegas and took it back to his hotel room during a night of heavy drinking. The panel needed about five hours to deliver guilty verdicts on felony and misdemeanour animal abuse charges.
Fairbarn, 34, took the Chilean flamingo named Peachy from the Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino in March. The hotel’s wildlife habitat, along the city’s famous Strip, is free for guests to walk through and houses a flock of Chilean flamingos, other birds, fish and turtles.
Video and testimony at the trial
Footage shown in court showed Fairbarn smiling as he carried the bird by its neck into a lift. He testified that he had drunk 30 to 40 beers beforehand and said he never meant to harm the animal, describing the act as something he thought would be “funny”. He said he had been drinking all night and had just finished a call with a colleague when he made the decision.
Animal experts told the court that the flamingo had feathers torn out and had lost blood because of Fairbarn’s actions. The jury heard from 14 witnesses and reviewed more than 112 pieces of evidence over the course of the trial.
Defence lawyer blames alcohol for poor choices
Fairbarn’s lawyer, Josh Tomsheck, said his client’s actions were meant as a harmless prank and blamed alcohol for his conduct. “The truth is, Mitch was drunk. Mitch was stupid. He made bad decisions,” Tomsheck said.
Tomsheck also said Fairbarn should not have entered the habitat, touched a bird or taken Peachy inside. The lawyer added that his client had received death threats since his arrest.
Sentencing date and the bird’s condition
Fairbarn has been unable to leave the United States since his arrest and remains under house arrest in Las Vegas. He faces nearly five years in prison, and his sentencing hearing is due to take place in December.
A state veterinarian said Peachy has largely recovered since the incident but now appears more anxious around humans.
