A Canadian man was convicted Monday of animal cruelty for snatching a pink flamingo named Peachy from its enclosure at an iconic Las Vegas hotel. Prosecutors said it was a malicious prank while a lawyer for the tourist insisted it was a drunken romp that was not intended to harm the bird.
Prosecutors said tourist Mitchell Fairbarn injured and frightened the 27-year-old Chilean flamingo when he removed it from its habitat at the Flamingo Las Vegas Hotel and Casino and carried the screaming bird to his room on March 3. Defense attorney Josh Tomsheck told trial jurors in a Nevada court that the man deeply regretted the “bad decisions” he made while drunk.
After about five hours of deliberations, jurors handed down felony and misdemeanor animal cruelty convictions against the man from Ontario, Canada. Jurors were allowed to find either felony or misdemeanor animal cruelty in both cases after reviewing 112 exhibits and hearing from 14 witnesses, CBS affiliate KLAS-TV reported.
The man remains under house arrest while awaiting sentencing
Fairbarn remains under house arrest pending a sentencing hearing scheduled for Dec. 1. He faces up to four years in prison for the felony and possibly an additional six months for the misdemeanor conviction. After the verdict, he declined to comment as he left the courtroom with his wife. He showed no visible emotion.
His lawyer also had no comment.
Benjamin Hager/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP 
Since the incident, the flamingo has been doing well physically, but has been more anxious and nervous during his evaluation, said Peachy’s veterinarian, Tiffany Moore, medical director of Lone Mountain Animal Hospital.
Prosecutors earlier told jurors that Fairbarn deliberately caused physical pain to the bird, noting that feathers were found on the hotel floor. The video showed the bird screaming while Fairbarn handled it, and prosecutors said Peachy felt pain as it was pulled by its legs.
In their closing statements Monday, prosecutors pointed to a video recorded around the time Fairbarn is heard saying on March 3, “I swear to God, I’m going to fuck (unintelligible) one more time,” KLAS-TV reported.
Fairbarn said he came to Las Vegas to attend a business event at Con Expo and during a 24-hour period he drank “30 to 40” beers with friends, KLAS-TV reported.
Video played during the trial showed Fairbarn holding the flamingo in an elevator and carrying it down a hotel hallway at the famous hotel. The Flamingo is one of the oldest hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, and its well-known flamingo habitat is also home to hummingbirds, turtles, koi and other species.
Peachy was missing feathers after being kidnapped
Las Vegas police responded to the scene after security personnel reported that someone had taken the flamingo. When Peachy was located, he was missing seven to eight feathers, blood on his feathers and wounds on his wings, authorities said.
Fairbarn previously told jurors that he grabbed Peachy to take back to his hotel room to show his friends, but that he did not intend to torture the animal, KLAS-Tv reported. The flamingo spent about 15 minutes with Fairbarn, then two to three minutes in the hotel room before being released into the hallway.
Taking the bird was “stupid” and “fueled by drunkenness,” defense attorney Tomsheck said. But he said his client never intended to harm the bird, a key part of the criminal charge.
“He shouldn’t have done that, shouldn’t have gone into the habitat, shouldn’t have touched a bird, shouldn’t have taken Peachy inside,” Tomsheck said. “The truth is, Mitch was drunk. Mitch was stupid. He made bad decisions.”
Fairbarn could be seen in court at one point with his head down with his hands covering his eyes.
Benjamin Hager 
The man had received death threats after taking the flamingo, and he was unable to leave the United States when his father died while Fairbarn was awaiting trial, Clark County Prosecutor Haley Willming said. While these events were unfortunate, the prosecutor said “none of this would have happened if he hadn’t done what he did, if he hadn’t made the choices he made.”
Jurors began deliberating shortly before noon following closing arguments Monday morning.
Animal rights activist says justice has been served
Nevada animal rights advocate John Waudby, who recently helped strengthen the state’s animal cruelty laws, said he believes justice has been served on Peachy’s behalf.
“I hope this sends a message to anyone who wants to prey on our animals that you’re not going to do it in Nevada,” he said outside the courtroom after Monday’s verdict.
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