Cub will remain at Noah's for now

A trial will be in February to determine final ownership of the lion cub.
& lt;a href=mailto:bjackson@vindy.com & gt;By BOB JACKSON & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Boomerang is staying put for now, but that could change come February.
That was the ruling handed down Tuesday afternoon by Magistrate Gene Fehr of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, where a court battle is raging over ownership of the 10-week-old lion cub.
Boomerang has been kept at Noah's Lost Ark, a Berlin Township sanctuary for abused and neglected exotic animals, since Oct. 12. He was taken there by a reporter from the New York Post, who bought the cub for $1,000 as part of a story on how easy it is to buy such animals.
William Long, of the Columbus suburb Upper Arlington, worked with the reporter and put his name on the bill of sale, which he says makes him Boomerang's legal owner. He says the cub was taken to Noah's Lost Ark on Bedell Road only as a temporary measure because the animal was so young -- just 8 days old -- when it was taken from its mother.
Basis for suit
Long is suing Noah's Lost Ark and its owners, Douglas and Ellen Whitehouse, demanding that they return the cub to him so he can send it to another exotic animal sanctuary in Southern California. The Whitehouses have refused, saying they believe the reporter, Al Guart, relinquished ownership of the cub to them.
After two days of testimony on a request for a preliminary injunction, Fehr ruled Tuesday that it appears Long is the owner, so he should be allowed to take Boomerang out of Noah's Lost Ark.
Fehr agreed, however, to leave the cub at Noah's Lost Ark until a trial is held to make a final determination of the lion's ownership. The trial is set for Feb. 18.
Fehr said there is no evidence that either Long or the cub will be harmed in any way by allowing Boomerang to remain at the Berlin Township facility until the case is ultimately resolved.
Law allows it
He also pointed out that under Ohio law, Noah's Lost Ark can keep the cat while the case is pending because it has posted a $2,000 bond, which is double what Long and Guart paid for the animal when they bought him from a vendor in Wapakoneta, Ohio.
Long testified Tuesday that his intention all along was for the lion to be placed at Shambala, an animal sanctuary operated in California by actress and animal activist Tippi Hedren.
But because the cub was so young and small when they bought him, Long and Guart decided to take him to Noah's Lost Ark rather than taking him directly to California. Long said it was intended only to be temporary, until the cub was old enough to travel.
Long said he had been to Noah's Lost Ark once before and felt it would be a suitable place to take the cub. He has never been to Shambala, he added.
Fehr said taking an 8-day-old cub away from its mother was a "reckless act," but Long said he and Guart did it to prevent the animal from being sold to an exotic pet store or to an owner who would not properly care for it.
& lt;a href=mailto:bjackson@vindy.com & gt;bjackson@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;