Bronx Reptiles, Inc. imported live animals, including reptiles, into the country approximately twice per week. Edelman, the owner, knew of the International Air Transport Association guidelines for importing wildlife—

how specifi c species should be shipped and the container requirements. Yet, over the years, his company has been cited and civil fi nes paid for numerous violations.

Dead animals included iguanas and boa constrictors from Colombia and small mammals from Egypt. When frogs from the Solomon Islands were found dead, Bronx Reptiles, Inc. was convicted of a misdemeanor for violating a statute that made it illegal to “knowingly caus

(e) a ‘wild animal’ to be transported to the U.S.

under inhumane or unhealthful conditions.” Edelman countered that because frogs were reptiles, and not wild animals, they were not covered by the statute. The judge ruled that frogs are, in fact, amphibians and, in any event, fall within the statutory proscription. Given Edelman’s belief that the statute did not apply to frogs, is it possible to prove that Edelman “knowingly” caused the inhumane conditions? [ United States of America v. Bronx Reptiles, Inc ., 949 F. Supp. 2d 481

(E.D. N.Y. 1998).]