Criminal Law News

Persons convicted of animal abuse, could find themselves appearing on the radar of law enforcement agencies for more serious crimes, including domestic violence and abuse. It’s a disturbing trend that criminal defense lawyers in California and elsewhere must be aware of.

According to the New York Times, lawmakers around the country are responding very strongly to persons convicted of animal neglect and abuse, including hoarding of animals, keeping them in filthy conditions torturing them etc. Not only will this help keep veterinary care costs down for these states, but it will also point to potential personality flaws in the person, corresponding with perpetrators of domestic abuse and violence. At least that’s the theory.

Towards this end, lawmakers are strengthening their laws against animal abuse, with stiff penalties and longer sentences on the horizon. Most interestingly for California criminal defense lawyers, these persons will then be tracked for possible domestic or child abuse.

According to supporters of these tracking measures, there is enough evidence to indicate that persons with a history of animal abuse are very likely to indulge in the same kinds of abuses of other persons in their home. According to one study, in about 88% of houses where there was child abuse, the researchers found that that animal abuse was also rampant. Other studies have shown that women who suffered domestic violence were 10 times more likely to report that their spouse also abused their pets. According to supporters of such tracking, it will help law enforcement intervene in a potentially violent situation, much earlier.

In other words, a person’s record of animal abuse could cause them to be monitored or tracked for possible signs of abuse and mistreatment of his spouse or children. Big Brother, anyone? We have no problems with the idea that a person who engages in severe or intense torture of animals is likely to have a personality flaw that could place him at risk of abusing people in his home. But that doesn’t mean that a person with a conviction for mistreatment of animals should have law-enforcement officers and the government looking over his shoulder at all times