Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Bismarck police are looking to the city attorney's office for guidance after officers responded to a report of sheep being slaughtered in an apartment complex parking area.
Authorities said a couple new to the country was performing a religious ceremony with the sheep on Friday, when the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha was being celebrated.
No arrests were made, and the couple will not face criminal charges, as no specific city ordinance or health code appeared to have been violated, Assistant City Attorney Jason Hammes told The Bismarck Tribune .
"I didn't see anything on this that jumped out as over-the-top disorderly," he said.
However, livestock aren't allowed to be kept in city limits, and police want to know how to handle such situations in the future.
"We want to be respectful of people's religious beliefs, but we also want to consider the environment that this is in," Lt. Steven Scheuer said.
___
Information from: Bismarck Tribune, http://www.bismarcktribune.com
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
