I-Team: Petland Sues Protester

MARIETTA, Ga. - A Kennesaw pet store targeted by protesters for more than a year sued the main protest leader over what she's put on Facebook.

The "Shutdown Petland in Kennesaw, Georgia" Facebook page had nearly 7000 likes, many complaining the store sold puppies produced in puppy mills or often sold pets who were seriously ill.

After more than a year of sidewalk protests, this dispute finally wound up before a judge. Lamar Parker, the longtime owner of Petland Kennesaw... squared off against Karen Paul, animal lover and creator of the Facebook page that has clearly put a muzzle on the pet store's profits.

"She's a stay-at-home mom who they thought could bully and harass into shutting down the page," argued her attorney Tamara Feliciano.

"We're not looking to end her web page," countered Petland's attorney Nicholas Geiger. "We're not looking to stop the protests. The case is about a handful of recklessly false and defamatory statements made on the webpage."

Paul started the Facebook protest page after multiple visits to the Kennesaw store, where she posted reports of seeing sick dogs, sometimes sold for as much as $4000. She claimed store employees misled customers not just on the health, but also on the breed of dog or cat they were buying. She posted pictures of 18-wheelers unloading puppies from out-of-state breeders.

When the FOX 5 I-Team made an undercover visit in July, the workers promised us certain animals wouldn't shed, even though management later admitted there was no guarantee.

And various cats experts insisted certain $1500 dollar cats advertised as designer breeds were nothing more than common housecats. Petland's response? No one had ever complained.

Just this week, the Humane Society for the United States revealed their own hidden camera investigation of Georgia pet stores. It accused Petland Kennesaw of relying on puppies from questionable breeders, including one who received an Official Warning letter from the US Department of Agriculture for violating federal minimum care veterinary regulations.

Petland of Kennesaw insisted all their puppies come from responsible, licensed breeders.

Karen Paul's attorney says she has a First Amendment right through her Facebook page to rally the community and government to take action.

"Kennesaw Petland is trying to send a message to 7000 community members speaking against them, and that message is perfectly clear." said Ms. Feliciano.

But the store pointed to specific comments on the Facebook page about how they treat animals that it insists are not true. Petland Kennesaw's attorney argued those "defamatory" comments caused the store to lose sales and revenue and loss of goodwill in the community.

They wanted Cobb County Superior Court Judge Robert Flournoy to order Karen Paul to remove the posts, apologize and pay damages and their legal fees.

"Claims that Petland employees are murdering dogs in the backroom without any sort of medication is just... completely false," said Mr. Geiger. "That just doesn't happen."

Judge Flournoy said he'd rule later whether the lawsuit should be thrown out or allowed to move forward.