Key Points
-
Authorities made several attempts to get in contact with Linda Blair before obtaining a search warrant for her property.
-
An inspection of her Southern California property was conducted on July 31 in response to a reported kennel operation.
-
The Department of Regional Planning has said that “no animals were removed from the property” nor did any show signs of illness or injury. The case remains active.
Authorities made two dozen attempts to search Linda Blair‘s home before obtaining an inspection warrant on July 31, Entertainment Weekly has learned.
Over the weekend, the Exorcist star’s Southern California property was searched as part of an investigation into a reported kennel operation. A spokesperson for the Department of Regional Planning confirmed the search in a statement to EW while also noting that several attempts were made for authorities to inspect the property beforehand.
“Regional Planning made nine separate attempts to schedule an inspection of the property, and DACC [Departments of Regional Planning, Animal Care and Control] made an additional 15 attempts over a period of three years to contact the property owner to conduct its own inspection,” the statement said. “All attempts by both departments went unanswered, leaving the County no alternative but to seek a judicial warrant to proceed.”
The departments, who searched her property as part of a joint operation, claim that permits for Blair’s kennel facility expired in 2023. The goal of the operation was to “inspect multiple unpermitted structures and follow up on complaints about more than 100 dogs being kept in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions in a variety of unpermitted and/or unapproved sheds or outbuildings on site.”
Linda Blair in 2022
Credit: Jody Cortes/Getty
The agency stated that the property was previously licensed to allow “a maximum of 100 dogs” and has since “been repeatedly cited for license violations, including at one point housing more than 180 dogs.”
Blair, who has been dedicated to animal rights advocacy for decades and runs a dog adoption charity, has not been accused of committing any crimes.
The agency told EW that per their inspection, “No dogs showed signs of illness or injury and no animals were removed from the property.” The investigation remains active and ongoing.
Blair addressed the search in a video shared to Instagram on Friday, telling followers, “Today we got a really big surprise visit, and as it turns out, there is nothing but some paperwork and some new diagrams and things. But as everyone knows, I have been trying to move for the last two years, really. And it’s imperative to my health and trying to help more animals.”
Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter.
Blair then assured fans, “I am fine, the animals are fine, and we just have some paperwork that has to be dealt with, and that’s all this was all about. I don’t know why mail isn’t used more often to notify somebody. Just sayin’! Alright. Thank you.”
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly