AKC vs BOULTON - THE DEFENDANT
Part II
by
Louis A. Fallon, Legal
Analyst/Reporter
Over fifty years - Dogs have been a
big
part of George Boulton’s life for over fifty years. His wife Connie
has been ‘in dogs’ since 1980, together with their prize winning
Whippets they were a happy family at dog shows. By dint of hard work
George became a dog show judge and worked his way up to being one of
the top elite 674 Best In Show dog show judges in the USA. Sadly,
George Boulton was publicly embarrassed and humiliated by the AKC at
its May 8, 2006 board meeting, by their revoking his judging
approval privileges for one year.
The AKC board decision was made without any
hearing or personal appearance by George or his lawyer. The AKC
publicized the one year judging revocation on the AKC website and it
will be printed in the AKC Gazette, even before George has a chance
to file an appeal, an appeal provided for in accordance with the
AKC’s own written procedure. This unlawful and illegal double
jeopardy action by the AKC happened after the March 29, 2006 AKC
South West Trial Board had spent sixteen hours over two days time
trying the case of AKC vs. George Boulton and dismissing the AKC
identical charges on the factual grounds that the charges against
George were not sustained. Read the 7-page Trial Board decision at
the bottom of this article.
George Boulton won in court, at the AKC South West Trial Board
hearing, but the AKC Board ignored its own Trial Board and the
Constitution of the United States of America to revoke George’s
judging license approval for one year. The Constitution of the
United States, the AKC’s own written bylaws and the Trial Board
decision were flushed down the toilet by the AKC Board. The AKC
board includes one lawyer, one California Municipal Court judge and
ten other people that are no strangers to Courts of Law in their
professional and personal lives.
Double jeopardy - As we all learned in high school history or
civics class, the phrase "double jeopardy" comes from the
Fifth Amendment to the
United States Constitution:
"nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice
put in jeopardy of life or limb". This clause is intended to limit
prosecutorial abuse by the
government in repeated
prosecution for the same
offense, as a means of harassment or oppression. It is also in
harmony with the ancient English
common law concept of
res judicata, which
prevents courts from re-litigating issues and claims that have
already been the subject of a final judgment.
As the March 29, 2006 AKC South West Trial
Board the AKC was represented by an very experienced in-house AKC
staff attorney with over ten years experience in prosecuting cases
before Trial Boards. The South West Trial Board issued its written
judgment in dismissing the AKC charges that George Boulton appeared
on a television show where he made derogatory and inappropriate
comments about judges.
Being tried twice for the same offense is prohibited by the Fifth
Amendment to the United States Constitution. The double jeopardy
clause protects against three distinct abuses: [1] a second
prosecution for the same offense after acquittal, as in George
Boulton’s case; [2] a second prosecution for the same offense after
conviction; and [3] multiple punishments for the same offense. See,
U.S. v. Halper, 490 U.S. 435, 440 (1989). The double jeopardy clause
protects against multiple punishments for the same offense, see
Justices of Boston Municipal Court v. Lydon, 466 U.S. 294, 306
(1984). A defendant may not be tried again, at least, not on the
same or substantially similar charge, Fong Foo v. United States, 369
U.S. 141 (1962).
Though the Fifth Amendment applies usually most often to the federal
government, the United States Supreme Court has ruled that the
double jeopardy clause applies to the individual fifty states as
well, through
incorporation
by the
Fourteenth Amendment. The
AKC is a non-profit corporation of the State of New York which
operates in all fifty states of the USA. George Boulton is a
resident of Arizona. The AKC South West Trial Board held its
judicial hearing in southern California.
Taxing Situation - The AKC is not a private club. it is a
public corporation. Since April 1963 when it finally obtained
a federal tax exemption under 501-C-4 of the IRS code. The AKC was
originally turned down by the IRS in 1938 and by a Manhattan Federal
District Court in 1940 and a New York Federal Appellate Court in
1943. It took twenty more years and a change in Presidential
administration for the AKC to cash in its political support of the
election of President Dwight Eisenhower and obtain the federal tax
exemption. As a 501-C-4 public corporation if anyone would like to
have a copy of the AKC’s annual tax report to the IRS, just ask the
IRS or the AKC itself for a copy, and you can see read how much
salary and benefits are paid to the AKC officers and board members.
In his own words before the Trial Board George admitted that he was
foolish, that he signed a blanket waiver and consent form for the TV
production company that produced the cable TV mini-series
ShowDogs, Moms and Dads. As the Trial Board took judicial
note of in their logical and reasoned decision, the TV production
company cut-and-pasted participant words out of context to make it
appear that George was attacking other dog show judges when in fact,
he was talking about a hypothetical bad dog show judge.
I saw the TV mini series and did not care
for it, in my opinion it was poorly done and the production value
was negligible as well as the fact that the film segments were too
fast and disjointed. Watching the TV mini-series reminded me of the
AKC produced video films “Dealing with Misconduct at Dog Show and
Obedience Trials”, “Dealing with Misconduct at Field Trials and
Hunting Tests”, and “In the Ring with Mr. Wrong” which also related
to hypothetical bad dog show judges.
George Boulton sincerely regrets signing the TV production company
waiver form. I ask, how many dog show exhibitors have ever read the
reverse side of the standard AKC dog show entry form? How many
exhibitors know what legal rights they are waiving by entering their
dog in a dog show and agreeing not only to the AKC rules but also to
the different additional host dog clubs rules as printed in each dog
show premium list? As a member of several host dog club show
committees I have enforced the rules and prosecuted people who
violated the premium list club rules or the AKC rules and have heard
many exhibitors complain “I didn’t know”. A few years ago the
Westminster Kennel Club enforced its local club rules as printed in
its premium list and fined many of its dog show exhibitors for
violating that dog club’s rules against removing a dog from the
dog’s bench.
I urge each of you to read the written opinion of the AKC
Southwestern Trial Board (here on TheDogPress website). A reasoned,
logical document written after a two day sixteen hour Trial Board
hearing, with lawyers on both sides presenting their case,
documents, and witnesses. The written opinion written by our fellow
dog show fanciers, people like us that go to dog shows, enter dog
shows, judge at dog shows, steward, direct traffic, and help to make
the wonderful sport of pure-bred dogs what it is. George Boulton was
judged by the Trial Board and the charges were dismissed.
The AKC could have appealed the dismissal
of the charges from the AKC South West Trial Board verdict to the
AKC Appeal Trial Board. The AKC chose not to take an appeal. Instead
they violated George Boulton’s legal rights; the AKC violated the
Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The AKC violated
the double jeopardy clause which protects against abuses by having a
second prosecution for the same alleged offense after acquittal.
It can happen.... I do not personally know George Boulton,
but when a fellow dog fancier’s legal rights are violated, then all
dog fanciers rights are violated. If it happened to George Boulton
it can happen to you, your spouse, your junior handlers, to the
people in your dog club.
Only Two Prevailed! There is a 7-page AKC publication titled
“Trial Board and Appeal Trial Board Procedures (Amended to February
6, 2004)”, AKC # RDTBD1(05/04) . You can obtain a copy of it from
the AKC, from the executive secretary office or from any of the AKC
legal department’s three in-house lawyers. The publication provides
the only public document on the inner workings and process of the
AKC Trial Board operation. Be advised that every trial Board member
throughout the USA is also an AKC dog show judge and many of them
are also AKC delegates. I believe that this results in a built in
AKC prosecutorial basis in favor of the AKC against the defendant.
In over thirty years of reading the AKC Secretaries page listing
those peoples names that had been found guilty by an AKC Trial Board
I have only seen one report, about a year ago, with the persons name
omitted, of a field trial dog show judge that prevailed against the
AKC at a Trial Board. In the Gazette words following that dismissal
report, there was an AKC comment to the effect that the AKC was
going to strengthen and tighten up its prosecutorial might to insure
that a Trial Board dismissal never happened again.
Then in 2006 the George Boulton case came
along and George and his lawyer, Lonnie Kocontes, prevailed at the
South West Trial Board. Imagine that, two dog show judges
prevailing at an AKC Trial Board.
The AKC document “Trial Board and Appeal Trial Board Procedures
(Amended to February 6, 2004) is not, in my opinion, a model of
judicial fairness. Obtain a copy from the AKC and read it for
yourself.
Email me what you think about its most egregious part as found
on page 3:
“The Trial Board is not bound by the rules of evidence. The
weight to be given to any hearsay evidence, affidavits, or letters
should be carefully considered.”
If court rules of evidence do not apply, what is next? Disregarding
the dog breed standards at dog shows?
Conscious decision - An unimpeachable source told me that
Gorge Boulton spent over $20,000.00 in legal fees and expenses to
hire a defense lawyer and bring in witnesses from three thousand
miles away.
Would you spend $20,000.00 to defend your
good name and reputation before an AKC Trial Board? George Boulton
stood up for his legal rights and asked to be judged fairly and
honestly and the AKC South West Trial Board, consisting of three dog
show judges who are lawyers rose to the occasion. Following the
Trial Board dismissal the AKC made the conscious decision to violate
the double jeopardy clause of the Fifth Amendment to the United
States Constitution and charge George Boulton with the same charges
which the Trial Board had heard over sixteen hours time, evaluated
and dismissed.
George Boulton was badly treated by the
AKC. He was treated like a low cur, his dog show judging license
approval revoked without trial after having the identical charges
dismissed by an AKC Trial Board.
Coming Soon: Inside the Trial Board,
Interviews, etc
Handy links:
_______________________________________
Lady Bites AKC Canine Health Foundation
The title says it
all.
AKC vs Boulton Peter Gaeta's Letter to Mr. Boulton and
George Boultons' Attorney's Response
AKC vs Boulton 1 - Trial
How
the nightmare began and the charges.
Trial Board Report and Findings
The
first (only?) copy made public.
AKC vs Boulton
2 - Defendant
So what happened? You won't
believe it!
AKC vs Boulton 3 - Banana
Where are we now?
Depends on where you sit.
AKC 100 Years Ago
April 2006
A look back to "the good old days" by Fallon (History
Series)
Dog Show Judge Bites Back
Part I - Martin Files Civil Lawsuit
Against Teague.
Dog Show Judge Bites Back
Part II - Synopsis of Civil
Lawsuit.
Dog Show Judge Bites Back
Sandy Teague's Apology to Judge Martin provided by Cheri
McNealy.
FCI Divorces CKC Federation Cynologique Internationale
ceased to recognize Canadian KC
American Dog Show History Began June 4, 1874 read to find
out more
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