Peanut the Squirrel’s owners are gearing up for an upcoming legal battle … filing an official notice of their intention to sue the State of New York for the death of their beloved pet.
Mark Longo and Daniela Bittner filed a notice of their intention to make a claim against the government for the death of Peanut and their raccoon, Fred … alleging unlawful search and seizure, violation of freedom of speech, and other due process violations.
Longo and Bittner say the incident was the result of negligence, carelessness, and recklessness by the state of NY and its agents … saying they may have violated due process laws by not revealing to a judge their intention to kill the animals after raiding Longo and Bittner’s home.
Another big issue with the raid … Longo and Bittner say Peanut and Fred were companion animals under the law — not wild animals. This claim was never discussed in court before the raid, another oversight in their opinion.
Peanut and Fred were not euthanized, according to the notice, because they weren’t sick … instead Mark and Daniela say the two animals were “executed.” That said, Longo and Daniela say they were acting in good faith by trying to get Wildlife Rehabilitator’s licenses and other permits before the raid occurred.
Since there was no legitimate basis to believe the animals had rabies. Mark and Daniela claim, a 10-day quarantine would have been sufficient … with no need to put the animals down
They will sue for emotional distress, pain and suffering, violations of their constitutional rights and lost wages since Peanut’s online presence supplemented their income.
Peanut and Fred went viral after people began posting online about the raid … and, their death has led prominent politicians to call for a full-scale investigation into possible government overreach.
We spoke to Daniela and Mark one day after the raid … and, they called this a blatant abuse of power at the time — saying it was an example of how broken the country is.
