Animal abuse is an all too sad reality, but a new law that requires animal abuse offenders to join a registry is becoming more prevalent in many states. There are already some jurisdictions in the U.S. that have implemented an animal offenders registry, similar to the sex offenders registry. Offenders’ identities would be publicly known for an area. The registry would also aid pet stores and shelters, keeping them from giving an animal to someone on the list.
Currently, Tennessee is the only state that has a registry, but other counties, including Suffolk County, NY, Hillsborough County, Florida, and Cook County, Illinois are setting up local animal offender registries. Some other states, including Connecticut, Washington, and Texas are also implementing similar concepts.
A person on the registry will have identifying information as a known abuser, including name, date of birth, offense, conviction date, and expiration date. First-time abusers will stay on the registry for two years and additional offenses earn them five years after the expiration date for every offense after the original.
Suffolk County legislator Jon Cooper told Shared.com: “We know there is a very strong correlation between animal abuse and domestic violence,” adding, “Almost every serial killer starts out by torturing animals, so in a strange sense we could end up protecting the lives of people.”
The registry will also include a photo and any aliases the person goes by if they’re 18 years or older, and if an animal abuser doesn’t register, they could face a $1,000 fine and up to a year in prison.
Would you support this law being passed where you live?