Kentucky State Police busted an alleged cockfighting operation in Casey County Saturday, charging 54 people with second-degree animal cruelty. Steve Hindi is the president and founder of the Illinois-based nonprofit Showing Animals Respect and Kindness. “We had information. We called the police, we called the KSP, and they jumped right in. And, you know this, this is the way it should work. They did the job.” A member of Hindi’s group also provided information that led to 14 second-degree animal cruelty charges at another cockfighting operation in Casey County last May. He said state police are more responsive these days, but more needs to be done. “Frankly, I wish the police could go in and get a court order and come back and burn the damn place down, because that’s pretty much what you’ve got to do. The judges, unfortunately, are not putting these guys away for a nearly long enough period.” Hindi said for some cockfighters, a few months in prison and a fine don’t compare to the many thousands of dollars they can make before and after their sentence. ** WEKU is working hard to be a leading source for public service, and fact-based journalism. Monthly supporters are the top funding source for this growing nonprofit news organization. Please join others in your community who support WEKU by making your donation. The post Fifty-four charged with animal cruelty at another alleged Casey County cockfighting operation appeared first on The Lexington Times.