As reported in The New York Times and numerous online news sites, a “bird lover” named James Stevenson is on trial for killing a cat that he claimed was preying on endangered birds. He now faces a $10,000 fine and up to two years in jail if convicted on animal cruelty charges in Texas.

The defendant doesn’t even dispute that he shot the cat with a rifle, and even boasts of shooting many other cats he found on his own property. However, this man runs a commercial bed-and-breakfast establishment targeted at bird enthusiasts, so it could easily be proved that he had a pecuniary interest in killing cats. Instead, his defense centers around the idea that the cat was feral and therefore killing her could not be prosecuted under the older state law.

While there’s a good chance the prosecution can prove that the cat, Big Mama, did effectively belong to someone (based on the fact that someone had fed, named her, and provided her with toys and a bed), the essential fact is that someone went out of their way to deliberately kill a cat. Big Mama died in pain, according to a police officer who was at the scene, though predictably the defense attorney attempted to discredit even this witness by saying “He’s not qualified to know what the cat was feeling.”

Perhaps bird lovers have no feelings for other animals, so they find it inconceivable that other humans could. But it doesn’t take much compassion to realize that animals have the right to live. And I bet James Stevenson didn’t name his birdies, either.