BERLIN TOWNSHIP New hearing is set in case of lion Boomerang

A lawyer argued there was no proof of any danger if the animal were released.
YOUNGSTOWN -- The fate of Boomerang the lion has landed in another court.
On Monday, the 7th District Court of Appeals granted a temporary stay of execution of an order to release the lion cub from Noah's Lost Ark, an animal sanctuary in Berlin Township.
The appeals court will have a hearing on the case Wednesday in the Columbiana County Juvenile Court in Lisbon. The appeals court, which has hearings throughout its jurisdiction, had previously set hearings there.
Visiting Judge Charles J. Bannon of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court ordered Friday that the male lion be returned to William Long of Upper Arlington, a Columbus suburb.
Judge Bannon ruled there were no facts to be litigated.
On Monday, he overruled a request by the sanctuary's lawyer, Michael J. O'Shea of Cleveland, to stay his order.
O'Shea argued that releasing the animal would be dangerous. It's about 6 months old.
Long said he went to the sanctuary Saturday with a veterinarian and a vehicle with a cage but was turned away.
Long also said he went back Monday morning without the vet but could have called the vet to be present if Boomerang were released.
No proof
Long's lawyer, J. Jeffrey Holland of Sharon Center, Ohio, filed a motion with the appeals court that argued that O'Shea had provided no proof of any danger.
Long said he understood that Boomerang weighs about 50 pounds. O'Shea said in court filings the lion weighs about 100 pounds.
Maj. Michael Budd of the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office said a deputy who went to serve the sanctuary with Judge Bannon's order estimated the animal weighed 60 to 70 pounds.
Returning property
Long's lawsuit was a replevin action to return property.
Budd said he would need a writ of replevin from a court to forcibly seize the lion.
After the appeals court stay, Long said he would talk with Holland to determine their next move.
The dispute began in October after Long bought the animal as a cub for a reporter from the New York Post, who was working on a story about sales of exotic animals.
The reporter, Al Guart, said he planned to take the cub to Shambala, an animal sanctuary in California run by actress Tippi Hedren. Instead, he left it at the sanctuary until it was strong enough to travel to California.
But Ellen and Douglas Whitehouse, owners of Noah's Lost Ark, said they believed Guart abandoned Boomerang.