Judge reserves judgment on contempt charge for Sloth Encounters owner Larry Wallach

A Suffolk County Supreme Court judge has reserved judgment on whether the Hauppauge-based Sloth Encounters has been operating in defiance of court orders, following a contempt hearing that concluded Monday morning.

The Town of Islip filed a motion for contempt against federally licensed animal exhibitor Larry Wallach in April after inspections found the exotic pet store allegedly continued to harbor wild animals in defiance of an order from Judge Joseph Santorelli in March.

The pet store currently operated is “consistent and legal” under Islip Town code, said John Zollo, Wallach’s attorney, adding that the town’s legal efforts are “misguided” and “selectively” targeting his client.

Wallach acknowledged at the hearing that when he initially opened his Veterans Memorial Highway business in June 2022 — charging $50 an hour to hold, feed and pet sloths, according to his website — the business was operating like a petting zoo, which he said he was unaware would be illegal under town code. 

He argued he has since come into compliance with town zoning by moving into retail; he now sells pet supplies, sloths, kangaroos and other exotic animals. Wallach also said he continued to make home visits with his sloths while his store was closed from September through late December. Santorelli initially issued court orders in September for Wallach to shut down his business.

Wallach maintained he's "100%" compliant with town code. 

The legal definition of a wild animal has been among the focal points in the Islip Town case. Zollo argued that the town's definition of a "wild animal” is “vague” and “arbitrary.”

Santorelli, said he was “troubled” by the "line of questioning" related to the definition and said he was not passing judgment on what constitutes a wild animal. 

Assistant town attorney for Islip, Jeffrey Panasci, pointed out that Wallach had been selling tarantulas and scorpions when the store was inspected in April, which are explicitly named as wild animals in town code. Wallach responded that he removed them "very quickly" once he learned they were illegal. 

A town planner testifying at the hearing said the use of the building as a pet store is inconsistent with the current certificate of occupancy. He said the paperwork submitted so far to resolve the store's use as a pet store has been incomplete, which is why the application has not moved forward.

Wallach during his testimony accused the town of intentionally holding up the paperwork process.

“You can’t just open a pet store,” Panasci said.

Allowing Wallach to continue in defiance of town code undermines the town’s authority, he continued, adding that “voluntary ignorance” is no excuse.

Wallach is also facing criminal charges from the Town of Islip, filed in April for the alleged sale of wild animals, and a citation from the state Department of Environmental Conservation for allegedly possessing and offering for sale three Nile monitor lizards, which are illegal in New York.

By Brianne Ledda

brianne.ledda@newsday.com@brianne_ledda

Brianne Ledda covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.