dv8grl
07-01-2009, 01:24 PM
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/orl-bk-python-strangles-child-death-sumter-070109,0,7732901.story
OXFORD, FLORIDuh - A 2-year-old girl was strangled by a 12-foot albino Burmese python early this morning in this rural community just west of The Villages, according to authorities.
Officials with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said it's likely this may be the state's first case of a non-venomous constrictor snake causing a death.
Lt. Bobby Caruthers of Sumter County Sheriff's Office said the python was a family pet that apparently broke free from inside a glass aquarium in the home's living room. The snake then made its way into the girl's bedroom and apparently strangled her in the middle of the night, according to authorities. The girl was identified as Shaiunna Hare. The home is off County Road 466, tucked in the middle of pastureland.
The snake's owner, Charles Darnell, 32, found the snake on top of the 2-year-old this morning after he noticed the snake was missing from the aquarium. He then started stabbing the snake. Family members called 911 at 9:43 a.m. The child was dead when emergency crews arrived at 10 a.m. She had a bite mark on her head, authorities said.
It's a tragedy," Caruthers said.
Authorities said Darnell is the boyfriend of the girl's mother, Jaren A. Hare, 23. However, Darnell is not the girl's father.
Darnell is now being questioned by Sumter Sheriff's investigators and may face child endangerment charges. State wildlife officials said Darnell likely faces a second-class misdemeanor charge because he did not have a permit for the python. The misdemeanor charge could be punishable up to a $500 fine and 60 days in jail.
Caruthers said the Burmese python slithered away after being stabbed by Darnell and is still missing.
"The snake may very well be deceased as we speak," he said.
Darnell also had a 6-foot boa constrictor in the home, but that was in a secure container, authorities said. Sheriff and state wildlife officials are now waiting for a search warrant to enter the home and find the python. Darnell is cooperating with investigators and the search warrant is a matter of procedure, Caruthers said.
Two other young children also live in the home, according to authorities.
Darnell told investigators that he put the python inside a bag Tuesday night and then placed the bag inside the aquarium.
Wildlife officers said that's a common way of housing large pythons, but could not say whether that was done in this case.
"Usually you tie off the bag and you put something on top of the enclosure," said Joy Hill of FWC.
Hill said Burmese pythons can grow to more than 20 feet.
George Van Horn, owner of Reptile World Serpentarium in St. Cloud, called it "extremely rare" for a python to attack a child.
"But you can never predict what a wild animal will do," he said. "Things can go great 999 out of a 1,000 times, but there can be that one time."
Large snakes, such as pythons, are typically very docile, therefore "people can look at them as being like any other animal, and as being very affectionate," he said. "But they're always operating on instinct."
Van Horn said the Oxford python probably had a "feeding response."
Nick Atwood, a campaign coordinator with the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida, said keeping wild exotic animals as pets can present several problems - including public safety and harming the natural environment if they are released into the wild.
The organization supports a ban on the sale of these kinds of animals, Atwood said.
"They're aren't supposed to be in Florida and can have negative impacts on Florida's wildlife and natural environment," he said. "People soon realize that it's very, very difficult to properly maintain and care for these animals...Unfortunately, some pet stores do not provide information about how much they can grow."
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., introduced a bill in February that would ban the import of all pythons into the United States, said Nelson's spokesman Bryan Gulley.
The bill came as a response to the increasing number of pythons being let loose in the Everglades and appearing in places around Florida such as the Florida Keys. The bill was referred to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and a hearing could be held on the issue.
"They certainly pose a threat," Gulley said. "People get them as pets and they get too big and they [pet owners] release them into the wild."
Because pythons are not originally from Florida, they pose a danger to native wildlife, he said. The Burmese python seems to be one of the top threats in the state. This species of python can be found mainly in southeast Asia.
"That seems to be the species of python that we're having the most problems with here in Florida," Gulley said.
U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, D-Miami, who is running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Mel Martinez, introduced the same bill to the U.S. House of Representatives in May. Meek shares Nelson's concern about the future of the state's ecosystems and wildlife, particularly in the Everglades, said Meek's spokesman Adam Sharon.
"It's a concern for Florida," Sharon said. "It affects the Everglades and places outisde of the Everglades."
In 2005, a 13-foot Burmese python tried to swallow a 6-foot alligator whole in Everglades National Park. The snake exploded with the alligator's hindquarters protruding from its midsection. It alerted wildlife officials and enthusiasts about the dangers of the pythons in the area.
It's one of at least 12 pet pythons attacks in the United States in the last few decades, said Beth Preiss, director of the exotic pets campaign of the Humane Society of the United States.
The Sumter 2-year-old is one of five children killed from a pet python throughout the country since 1980, Preiss said.
Pet pythons are more common because of the Internet where online sales have become popular. Online python sales can range from $200 to $500.
About 112,000 Asian snakes have been imported into the U.S. since 1990, according to FWC.
"Now with the Internet, people can make a spur of the moment decision," she said. "Each time we hear of oe of these tragedies can be prevented if people didn't get them as pets."
The FWC lists four types of pythons, including the Burmese python, as "reptiles of concern." Those who want to own a python must apply for a permit and pay $100 to keep the reptile as a pet. A computer identification chip is also needed.
A criminal background check conducted by the Orlando Sentinel showed that Darnell was arrested and charged with several drug charges, including possession of cocaine and possession of amphetamine with the intention to sell.
In Oxford, Frank Burnett, 69, who lives near the home where the 2-year-old girl was killed today said pythons are "good to eat, but not for pets."
OXFORD, FLORIDuh - A 2-year-old girl was strangled by a 12-foot albino Burmese python early this morning in this rural community just west of The Villages, according to authorities.
Officials with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said it's likely this may be the state's first case of a non-venomous constrictor snake causing a death.
Lt. Bobby Caruthers of Sumter County Sheriff's Office said the python was a family pet that apparently broke free from inside a glass aquarium in the home's living room. The snake then made its way into the girl's bedroom and apparently strangled her in the middle of the night, according to authorities. The girl was identified as Shaiunna Hare. The home is off County Road 466, tucked in the middle of pastureland.
The snake's owner, Charles Darnell, 32, found the snake on top of the 2-year-old this morning after he noticed the snake was missing from the aquarium. He then started stabbing the snake. Family members called 911 at 9:43 a.m. The child was dead when emergency crews arrived at 10 a.m. She had a bite mark on her head, authorities said.
It's a tragedy," Caruthers said.
Authorities said Darnell is the boyfriend of the girl's mother, Jaren A. Hare, 23. However, Darnell is not the girl's father.
Darnell is now being questioned by Sumter Sheriff's investigators and may face child endangerment charges. State wildlife officials said Darnell likely faces a second-class misdemeanor charge because he did not have a permit for the python. The misdemeanor charge could be punishable up to a $500 fine and 60 days in jail.
Caruthers said the Burmese python slithered away after being stabbed by Darnell and is still missing.
"The snake may very well be deceased as we speak," he said.
Darnell also had a 6-foot boa constrictor in the home, but that was in a secure container, authorities said. Sheriff and state wildlife officials are now waiting for a search warrant to enter the home and find the python. Darnell is cooperating with investigators and the search warrant is a matter of procedure, Caruthers said.
Two other young children also live in the home, according to authorities.
Darnell told investigators that he put the python inside a bag Tuesday night and then placed the bag inside the aquarium.
Wildlife officers said that's a common way of housing large pythons, but could not say whether that was done in this case.
"Usually you tie off the bag and you put something on top of the enclosure," said Joy Hill of FWC.
Hill said Burmese pythons can grow to more than 20 feet.
George Van Horn, owner of Reptile World Serpentarium in St. Cloud, called it "extremely rare" for a python to attack a child.
"But you can never predict what a wild animal will do," he said. "Things can go great 999 out of a 1,000 times, but there can be that one time."
Large snakes, such as pythons, are typically very docile, therefore "people can look at them as being like any other animal, and as being very affectionate," he said. "But they're always operating on instinct."
Van Horn said the Oxford python probably had a "feeding response."
Nick Atwood, a campaign coordinator with the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida, said keeping wild exotic animals as pets can present several problems - including public safety and harming the natural environment if they are released into the wild.
The organization supports a ban on the sale of these kinds of animals, Atwood said.
"They're aren't supposed to be in Florida and can have negative impacts on Florida's wildlife and natural environment," he said. "People soon realize that it's very, very difficult to properly maintain and care for these animals...Unfortunately, some pet stores do not provide information about how much they can grow."
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., introduced a bill in February that would ban the import of all pythons into the United States, said Nelson's spokesman Bryan Gulley.
The bill came as a response to the increasing number of pythons being let loose in the Everglades and appearing in places around Florida such as the Florida Keys. The bill was referred to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and a hearing could be held on the issue.
"They certainly pose a threat," Gulley said. "People get them as pets and they get too big and they [pet owners] release them into the wild."
Because pythons are not originally from Florida, they pose a danger to native wildlife, he said. The Burmese python seems to be one of the top threats in the state. This species of python can be found mainly in southeast Asia.
"That seems to be the species of python that we're having the most problems with here in Florida," Gulley said.
U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, D-Miami, who is running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Mel Martinez, introduced the same bill to the U.S. House of Representatives in May. Meek shares Nelson's concern about the future of the state's ecosystems and wildlife, particularly in the Everglades, said Meek's spokesman Adam Sharon.
"It's a concern for Florida," Sharon said. "It affects the Everglades and places outisde of the Everglades."
In 2005, a 13-foot Burmese python tried to swallow a 6-foot alligator whole in Everglades National Park. The snake exploded with the alligator's hindquarters protruding from its midsection. It alerted wildlife officials and enthusiasts about the dangers of the pythons in the area.
It's one of at least 12 pet pythons attacks in the United States in the last few decades, said Beth Preiss, director of the exotic pets campaign of the Humane Society of the United States.
The Sumter 2-year-old is one of five children killed from a pet python throughout the country since 1980, Preiss said.
Pet pythons are more common because of the Internet where online sales have become popular. Online python sales can range from $200 to $500.
About 112,000 Asian snakes have been imported into the U.S. since 1990, according to FWC.
"Now with the Internet, people can make a spur of the moment decision," she said. "Each time we hear of oe of these tragedies can be prevented if people didn't get them as pets."
The FWC lists four types of pythons, including the Burmese python, as "reptiles of concern." Those who want to own a python must apply for a permit and pay $100 to keep the reptile as a pet. A computer identification chip is also needed.
A criminal background check conducted by the Orlando Sentinel showed that Darnell was arrested and charged with several drug charges, including possession of cocaine and possession of amphetamine with the intention to sell.
In Oxford, Frank Burnett, 69, who lives near the home where the 2-year-old girl was killed today said pythons are "good to eat, but not for pets."