Our first Red Phone caller of the week, a local resident with a
passion for exotic animals, asked the Crimson Crusader if keeping a
large alligator in her Hollister home would violate any local or
state laws. The Crimson Crusader made a quick call to San Benito
County District Attorney John Sarsfield to find out.
Our first Red Phone caller of the week, a local resident with a passion for exotic animals, asked the Crimson Crusader if keeping a large alligator in her Hollister home would violate any local or state laws. The Crimson Crusader made a quick call to San Benito County District Attorney John Sarsfield to find out.
The prosecutor said owning such a pet would clearly violate Section 2118 of the California Fish and Game Code. The section reads, “It is unlawful to import, transport, possess, or release alive into this state, except under a revocable, nontransferable permit as provided in this chapter and the regulations pertaining thereto, any wild animal of the following species.”
And, dear caller, if you guessed alligators, along with aardvarks, zebras and hippos, were on that list of animals that require permits, you’d be right.
Although ownership or possession of such animals wouldn’t be a crime, Sarsfield said there could be civil or regulatory penalties.
Last, but not least, dear caller, it should be noted that owning a manatee or a gliding lemur also requires a permit.
General Loathing for Political phone calls
Several Red Phone callers during the last two weeks have called asking the Crimson Crusader to do something about the barrage of political survey phone calls they have been receiving. Unfortunately, the Crimson Crusader has been unable to find a way to help out. The Crimson Crusader can do no more to stop annoying phone calls than he can do to prevent spam from entering your inbox, unwanted supermarket circulars from entering your mailbox, or trashy flyers from being posted on your car. Short of answering the phone for you, there is little our helpful hero can do.
Whom will we turn to?
Our next Red Phone caller, concerned about the city’s possible funding cuts, commented that if Measure R, the city’s proposed 1 percent sales tax doesn’t pass, the Crimson Crusader may not have anyone to call when it comes to issues like fixing potholes on Sunnyslope Road. Yes, dear caller, that may be the case. If measure R doesn’t pass, the city may have to eliminate a host of services, including pothole repair. However, exactly what services would be reduced or eliminated hasn’t been finalized, and the voters of this fine city have yet to decide the fate of Measure R.
The crusader
humbly apologizes
Our final two callers of the week called to point out a glaring mistake made by the Crimson Crusader last week. The Crimson Crusader made a gesture of thanks to the Hollister work crews who helped fill in potholes on Sunnyslope Road. However, San Benito County Public Works crews also did a lot of the work on Sunnyslope Road.
The Crimson Crusader would like to offer the most humble and abject apologies to the San Benito County Public Works Department. And furthermore, the Crimson Crusader would like to say “Thank you” to the hardworking men and women of the San Benito County Public Works Department for all the work they have done that hasn’t been noticed, appreciated or publicly commented on, including the improvements to Sunnyslope Road. Cheers.
