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April is Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month. I carry two bills to address issues of animal neglect and cruelty.<\/p>\nApril is Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month. I carry two bills to address issues of animal neglect and cruelty.<\/p>\n
A.7094\/S.6913 – Includes use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument as an aggravated cruelty offense.<\/strong><\/p>\n Because of the difficulty inherent in proving “serious physical injury” (SPI) to companion animals, this legislation would elevate the penalty for causing physical injury to such animals through, use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument while intending to cause serious physical injury.<\/p>\n This bill addresses the a gap in the law when despite a clear and violent intent of the perpetrator to cause SPI or death to the animal, without proof of SPI, This bill acknowledges that the act itself of unjustifiably trying to cause death or SPI to an animal with a dangerous instrument or deadly weapon should be punishable as a felony and not depend solely on whether the animal is able to fully recover from its injuries.<\/p>\n A.9215\/S.8543 – Establishes a civil remedy for the protection of animals denied proper care <\/strong><\/p>\n New York law currently only provides a criminal process for adjudicating animal cruelty cases. There is currently no civil remedy to effectively protect companion animals from mistreatment. In addition in this year’s budget I have requested that the\u00a0budget proposal include $2.5M to create an animal crimes fund to help offset the costs to shelters and municipalities of holding live evidence in animal cruelty cases.<\/p>\n
\nthe most that could be charged is a misdemeanor. This means that under the current law that a person who unjustifiably shoots a dog and kills it can be charged with a felony, but if the dog survives, faces only a misdemeanor animal cruelty charge.<\/p>\n
\nThis bill would create a civil remedy to ensure that unfit owners are properly caring for their companion animals or, if necessary, remove such animals from their custody to prevent further mistreatment. A civil process for addressing animal mistreatment is critical given the significant
\nchallenges that come with enforcing criminal animal cruelty statutes.<\/p>\n