By: Stephen Hodzic, Staff Writer
The Pennsylvania animal abuse cruelty statutes went through a significant overhaul in 2017 with the addition of Libre’s Law.[1] The law included several provisions, including a significant increase of the penalty for aggravated animal cruelty – an individual charged with a violation of this statute can now be charged with a felony of the third degree.[2]
Several highly publicized animal attacks have occurred relatively recently. A mother in south Florida was walking the 6 month old puppy she got for her daughter when the dog was shot and killed by an individual with a pellet rifle; in a very similar circumstance to one that occurred in Eighty-Four, PA, several years ago in which a family found their dog dead in an alley by their home, also reportedly killed by a pellet rifle.[3] A family in Brookline found their pet cat on their front door with an arrow through his body; the cat was euthanized after arriving at the veterinarian.[4] In 2017, a Beechview man plead guilty to poisoning and killing several neighborhood cats; he faced several first degree misdemeanors and up to five years in prison at the time.[5]
Libre’s Law was enacted in 2017; it was named after a dog that was rescued from an Amish Lancaster County dog breeding facility with severe health issues, including sepsis and mange.[6] The poor condition of the four-month-old dog drew significant national and international attention.[7] A bill was eventually passed and Governor Tom Wolf signed it in to law on June 28, 2017. [8] Amongst other things, the bill included increased penalties for animal abuse, included protections for horses, imposed tethering restrictions (specifically dogs that were tied up and confined outside), and also granted civil immunity to veterinarians, veterinarian technicians, human society officers, and others for reporting suspected animal cruelty in good faith.[9]
Pennsylvania Statute Title 18 Section 5532 defines neglect of an animal as failure to provide necessary food, water, clean and sanitary shelter (keeping the animal dry and able to retain body heat), or veterinary care, and provides the penalty as a summary offense which can start at up to ninety days in jail and/or a $300 fine.[10] Repeated offenses can increase the penalty to a misdemeanor of the second degree with up to a year in jail and/or a $2,000 fine. Section 5533 defines animal cruelty as intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly “illtreats”, beats, abandons, overloads, or abuses an animal.[11] The penalty is the same as that of neglect, starting at a summary offense and potentially moving up to a misdemeanor of the second degree if the violation causes bodily injury or places the animal at imminent risk of serious bodily injury, with the same fines and penalties.[12] Finally, Section 5534 defines aggravated cruelty to an animal as when a person tortures an animal, or violates either of the above sections causing serious bodily injury or death to an animal. The penalty for this section is a felony of the third degree.[13] The penalties can include fines of up to $15,000 and/or a jail sentence of up to seven years.[14]
The recently enacted law has been used to target puppy mills, especially in the area of Lancaster County.[15] The work for animal cruelty prevention is ongoing in the region. On November 18, 2018, an Animal Law Conference took place in Pittsburgh to inform and update attorneys in the region of some of the different provisions of the new animals laws.[16] Two of the attorneys at the conference prosecuted animal abuse cases themselves, and attorneys were informed of different ways in which everyone can help fight and prevent animal abuse, including reporting suspected incidents of abuse to police and their local animal rescues.[17]
If you suspect an animal is being abused, please do not hesitate to contact a local official:
Humane Society Police Officers Registry:
http://pda.state.pa.us/BAHDS/HSPO/HSPOSearch.aspx
Other available resources:
http://www.thinkingoutsidethecage.org/site/c.elKWIeOUIhJ6H/b.8629679/k.DF24/How_to_Report_Animal_Cruelty.htm
Sources:
[1]https://www.wtae.com/article/pennsylvania-toughening-animal-cruelty-neglect-laws/10197982
[2]https://humane-pa.org/current-legislation-2/fact-sheets-about-pending-bills-2017/comprehensive-animal-cruelty-bill/
[3]https://www.wpxi.com/news/national/8-year-old-girl-s-puppy-killed-by-pellet-gun-sniper-florida-police-say/844761182; https://www.wpxi.com/news/local/dog-shot-pellet-gun-killed-eighty-four/197823948
[4]http://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2018/10/15/Pittsburgh-police-brookline-cat-killed-arrow-christine-luffey-animal-cruelty-nathan-orr/stories/201810150155
[5]http://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2017/09/12/Beechview-Pittsburgh-Daniel-Smith-guilty-killing-poisoning-cats-2015-colony-Realty-Avenue/stories/201709120129
[6]https://www.pennlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2017/06/wolf_signs_libres_law_giving_p.html
[7]Id.
[8]Id.
[9]Id.; https://www.wtae.com/article/pennsylvania-toughening-animal-cruelty-neglect-laws/10197982
[10]18 PA § 5532 https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/consCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&ttl=18&div=0&chpt=55&sctn=32&subsctn=0
[11]18 PA § 5533 https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/consCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&ttl=18&div=0&chpt=55&sctn=33&subsctn=0
[12]Id.
[13]18 PA § 5534 https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/consCheck.cfm?txtType=HTM&ttl=18&div=0&chpt=55&sctn=34&subsctn=0
[14]https://www.pennlive.com/news/2018/09/the_impact_of_libres_law_a_lat.html
[15]Id.
[16]http://www.post-gazette.com/life/2018/08/17/Pet-Tales-Animal-Law-Conference-Humane-Society-of-the-United-States/stories/201808170011
[17]Id.
