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Salinas opens police and SPCA investigations after viral bull-riding video
Summary
Mayor Donahue said footage from a bull-riding event at the Salinas Sports Complex on Aug. 1 is disturbing; the Salinas Police Department and the SPCA are investigating whether criminal or welfare violations occurred and the city is reviewing oversight of facility rentals.
Mayor Donahue opened the Aug. 4 meeting by telling residents the city is treating a viral video from a bull-riding event at the Salinas Sports Complex seriously and that the Salinas Police Department and the SPCA have been notified.
"The footage is disturbing, and I want to assure our community that we take this incident very seriously," Mayor Donahue said, and added the event was rented by a separate organization, not the California Rodeo Salinas. He urged anyone with information to contact the Salinas Police Department. Police, the mayor said, are "working closely with bridal control and the district attorney's office to determine whether criminal charges are appropriate." The SPCA has been asked to ensure the involved animal's welfare.
Public callers and council members later raised broader animal-welfare and oversight questions at the meeting, urging the city to review the lease and oversight committee that governs use of the Salinas Sports Complex. A caller on Zoom asked the council to "hold a public hearing on this lease, require the oversight committee to meet publicly as it's already obligated to do, and ensure the city has a final say over who uses a public property and what happens to animals on it." The mayor and several council members said they will pursue additional information from city staff and police.
