First man killed during a cockerel fight

On 30 January 2011, Jose Luis Ochoa of Lamont, California, USA died as the result, according to the later autopsy conclusion, of an accidental “sharp force injury” to his right calf. Ochoa, together with other spectators, had fled from the scene of a cockfight where five dead roosters and other evidence of cockfighting were found, according to a sergeant in the Sheriff’s department. Kern County Superior Court records show that Ochoa paid $370 in fines last year after pleading no contest to one count of owning or training an animal for fighting, according to a newspaper report. Cockfighting is illegal in the USA and attending or organising a cockfight, or training an animal to participate in one, are misdemeanours under California law. The birds have knives attached to their legs for fighting, and Ochea was stabbed by one of the cockerels and bled to death – a finding apparently supported by the evidence. While there are other examples of similar deaths, this is supported by an autopsy and police reports.