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Georgia Law Makes Animal Abuse Felony -7/06/00-



Home » Pet and Animal News » "TRACKERS" » ANIMAL CRIMES / CASES > Georgia Law Makes Animal Abuse Felony -7/06/00-
Home » Pet and Animal News » ANIMAL CRIMES / CASES > Georgia Law Makes Animal Abuse Felony -7/06/00-
RINGGOLD, Ga. -- A new law on the books in Georgia could be bad news for anyone charged with cruelty to animals. On May 1, Georgia's animal cruelty law became a felony instead of a misdemeanor, said Georgia Sen. Robert Brown, D-Macon. That means the penalty can be up to five years in prison and a fine of $15,000, instead of a sentence of less than a year behind bars. A recent Catoosa County case, in which two 14-year-old boys violently killed a kitten, points out the need for the law, said Mark Haskin of the Catoosa County Rabies Control and Animal Shelter. The boys were arrested and released to their parents' custody. They could be charged with a felony under Georgia's new law. "In general, any person could be tried as an adult, through the discretion of a Superior Court," said Catoosa County Juvenile Court Judge Ken Poston, but he could not comment on a specific case. He said, however, cases of cruelty to animals by juveniles have been shown to be a possible indicator of later violent tendencies. Sen. Brown has been proposing the stricter penalties for several years. "I was convinced that there's a correlation between people, especially kids, who do heinous crimes to animals, doing the same things to humans when they get older," Sen. Brown said. This year, the law passed, though there was opposition in the Georgia House of Representatives. Sen. Brown said some lawmakers who represent rural areas where hunting is popular feel there were sufficient laws on the books. "I'm hoping this will increase the awareness of citizens ... it's not boys will be boys and girls will be girls, especially when people are viciously abusing animals," Sen. Brown said. Under the old law, animal cruelty ranging from neglect or abandonment to torture was a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine not to exceed $5,000, imprisonment not exceeding 12 months, or both. These penalties will still be in place for minor animal crimes, Sen. Brown said. Darla Procter, an employee at the Catoosa County Rabies Control and Animal Shelter, said they see more animal neglect, such as not providing adequate food and water, than cruelty, except for the kitten's death last month and a dog that was set on fire nearly five years ago by a lady who was schizophrenic. "In the six years I have worked here, those are the only two instances where the people didn't show any remorse," Ms. Procter said. In most cases, people are becoming more educated, said John Pitner, Catoosa County Animal Control supervisor. "The Legislature knows they need something to fit the crime," Mr. Pitner said. "Anytime you raise a punishment or increase a fine, it will help things." Georgia's animal cruelty law still differs from Tennessee's, which was last amended in 1992. Tennessee law sets punishment as a fine not exceeding $2,500, or 11 months and 29 days in jail, or both, the forfeiture of the animal and the cost of care, said Hamilton County Humane Educational Society officials. Intentionally killing an animal is a class B felony in Tennessee and may result in a fine of $2,500 to $300,000, 11 months and 29 days to 2 years in jail or both, officials said.