About Animal Justice League of America
Animal Justice League of America is a nonprofit organization committed to eliminating animal abuse through REAL accountability. As founder of the modern rescue movement, AJLA works with law enforcement, local government, veterinary professionals, shelters, pet owners, and more to give a voice to the voiceless and lead the way to animal abuse reform and change.
Meet The Founder
Animal Justice League of America was founded by Shane Rudman, a successful entrepreneur and businessman living in the Kansas City area. At 29, Shane was named one of the top 10 entrepreneurs in North America under the age of 30 by The Association of Collegiate Entrepreneurs. Shane has served on many boards of both successful for-profit and nonprofit organizations.
Animal Justice League of America Begins
In March 2016, Shane and his wife, Gina, became aware of a pit bull named “Lucky” who had been admitted to Great Plains SPCA for treatment of gunshot wounds to his face and body. The story caught their attention because they were the proud parents of two pit bulls themselves, both adopted through Great Plains.
Years before, Shane and Gina had somewhat tentatively adopted a pit bull at the urging of their son, who volunteered at the local shelter. At that time, they had only had experience with the commonly spouted stigma that pit bulls are vicious by nature. However, they soon found their dog, “Cain,” was sweet-tempered, loyal, and affectionate. Within a year, they had adopted their second pit bull family member, whom they named “Riley Marie.”
The more they learned about Lucky, the more they wanted to help. Lucky and another dog were abandoned in a home for more than a month – no food, no water. The floors were covered in feces, and to escape, they’d eaten through two doors and broken through a glass window. Following Lucky’s escape, a nearby farmer shot him, fracturing a paw and opening a large wound on his muzzle, burying shrapnel in multiple places on his body. He also had a large hole in his tongue, probably from the ordeal of escaping his horrific situation. Lucky was rushed to Blue Pearl Veterinary Partners, where he spent 3 days receiving round-the-clock care for urgent treatment of his injuries.
Shane and Gina, supporters of Great Plains SPCA, cared for Lucky as foster parents during his recovery and quickly fell in love with his “never give up” attitude and loving personality. They adopted him a few weeks later.
Since then, Shane and Gina have fostered and adopted many pit bull-type dogs who have been shot or otherwise abused. Their most recent furbaby addition, Laggie, led them to form the Animal Justice League of America.
Shane and Gina feel called to lead this modern-day animal movement. They believe there is truth to the saying that “the greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” Advocating for animals is a very personal issue to them. They want to end animal abuse and cruelty and help to give a voice to those innocent animals who don’t have one.
The Importance Of Advocates
One of the main goals of ALJA is to empower an army of individuals in all 50 states that is dedicated to ending animal abuse. This will include a variety of people of all ages, walks of life, careers, etc.: community volunteers, professionals with expertise in law enforcement, individuals who work in the legal sector, veterinary medicine professionals, people who work in animal rescue, politicians, and more.
As passionate advocates for the humane treatment of animals, volunteers with AJLA’s movement have the potential to effect great change on many levels.
Part of the reason crimes against animals go unpunished is because law enforcement on the streets or prosecutors in the courthouse are not willing or able to follow through. When more people add pressure for animal abuse crimes to be reported, pursued, and prosecuted fully, there is greater chance for change.
AJLA is a place where those seeking to be advocates for the voiceless can get involved. Follow us on social media, participate in petitions, express yourself, and help us gain leverage in our fight to strengthen and enforcing animal abuse laws and practices.
AJLA – Great Plans For The Future
At AJLA, we use media and social media to shine a bright spotlight on animal abuse cases to educate and eliminate apathy. We are also committed to working with law enforcement and the legal system to strengthen and enforce laws to ensure animal abusers are charged, convicted, and punished to the full extent of the law.
Here are some of the objectives we are currently working on:
- Providing veterinary care for animals that are abused.
- Providing law enforcement the means to investigate animal abuse cases.
- Helping local governments file criminal cases that will stick – not just for animal abuse crimes, but others as well.
- Filing civil cases against animal abusers to help recoup veterinary expenses.
- Providing kennels for women’s shelters so they have a safe place they can go with their children AND dogs to prevent abuse.
- Creating an Animal Abuse Registry – similar to the sex offender registry.
- Shining a light on shelters and rescues with bad/dangerous/abusive practices and holding them accountable. Helping them be a better/safer place for animals.
- Helping communities understand the importance of spaying or neutering their pets.
And that is just the beginning!
At Animal Justice League of America, we believe a great opportunity lies before us. Our experience and research show that a significant portion of people who abuse animals will go on to commit violent or property crimes in the future. We believe that by holding animal abusers accountable and bringing them to justice, we can significantly reduce the incidence of violent crimes and property crimes, all while saving the lives of millions of animals.
In searching for a way to improve our communities, we looked back on Rudy Giuliani’s “broken window” approach to reducing crime in New York in the early 1990s. Violent crime dropped 65% and property crime dropped 56% in a few short years simply from law enforcement going after “small” and previously neglected crimes.
What New York (and other cities that followed suit) found, was that by addressing previously neglected crimes and “small” crimes, citizens and potential criminals recognized law enforcement was serious. If people were being held accountable for seemingly small crimes, then potential criminals realized the punishment for larger crimes would be worse and weren’t willing to risk it. This reduced crime across the board.
We all owe it to ourselves, our families, and our future to work together to bring accountability to those who commit crimes, especially violent crimes. At ALJA, we believe we have a chance to bring abusers to justice and improve the world for animals as well as people. Join us today – follow us on Facebook, donate, or spread the word and help us increase awareness, action, and accountability.