Madeline Bernstein, head of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles, voiced dismay at the killing.
“Basically, they agitated and frightened a cornered cat before they killed her,” she said, calling for a probe “into the procedures and training protocols required for safely interacting (with) and subduing wildlife.”
“Hosing a mountain lion down and then shooting her with pepper balls only served to make her more frenzied. Deadly force should be used only as a last resort. The citizens and wildlife of California deserve better.”
Mountain lions live in the Santa Monica Mountains and other areas north of Los Angeles, but are rarely seen and even more rarely come down into the sprawling West Coast metropolis itself.
Santa Monica police Lieutenant Calisse Lindsey said it was the first such incident she could recall in her 24 years in the department.
Source: AFP
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