Florida dog racing industry fights proposed statewide ban

When Florida residents took to the pools last fall they sent a very clear message to the greyhound racing business; we want you gone. The citizens expressed that sentiment with their overwhelming support of Amendment 13, a measure that would ban ban greyhound racing entirely in the Sunshine State.
But banning an entire industry out of existence isn’t quite as easy as taking a vote and shuttering their doors. As might be expected, the greyhound racing business is not going to go out without a fight. Their legal teams are challenging the idea that a single industry can be voted away in what could be a protracted legal battle.
At the heart of the matter is a lawsuit filed by the greyhound racing industry in an effort to have Amendment 13 overturned on a Constitutional basis. They’re suing the state of Florida, claiming that they haven’t been given due process in what is, essentially, a death sentence for their industry.
A lawyer for Support Working Animals, Inc. told the Jacksonville Business Journal, “This sets an extremely dangerous precedent that an individual may now be dispossessed of personal property at the pleasure of the mob in violation of one of the bedrock principles of the laws of the United States that our nation is not a pure democracy; instead it is a democratic republic.”
Attorney’s representing the State of Florida countered that no industry can sue government officials for executing doing their job which, in this case, is executing the will of the people. They’ve also argued that gambling is a “privilege” and not protected in the same way that other industries are protected.
This legal battle could go on for an extended period, so don’t expect any resolutions any time soon.