Legislature(2011 - 2012)CAPITOL 120
04/01/2011 01:00 PM House JUDICIARY
Audio | Topic |
---|---|
Start | |
HB179 | |
HB88 | |
HB1 | |
Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ | HB 1 | TELECONFERENCED | |
*+ | HB 179 | TELECONFERENCED | |
+ | TELECONFERENCED | ||
+= | HB 88 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 179 - ANIMAL CRUELTY 1:07:41 PM CHAIR GATTO announced that the first order of business would be HOUSE BILL NO. 179, "An Act relating to cruelty to animals and making failure to care for five or more animals in a single continuous episode a class C felony." REPRESENTATIVE LYNN, as the sponsor of HB 179, explained that [earlier in the year], authorities had to seize [approximately] 150 severely neglected dogs from a home in Willow - several so neglected that they were already dead. Such incidents, unfortunately, are not isolated; animal control officers have had to rescue multiple neglected animals throughout Alaska since 2008, and these are only the cases that are known about. Cases of mass animal neglect are shocking, and quickly overwhelm local and state animal-rescue services. Under the changes proposed by HB 179, contemporaneous violations of AS 11.61.140 involving five or more animals would be a class C felony, whereas currently such behavior warrants only a class A misdemeanor for each animal neglected. Under HB 179, the gravity of the charges would reflect the gravity of the crime, thereby discouraging people from taking on multiple animals without the ability or intention to care for each and every animal. The bill doesn't limit the number of animals that a person may possess, he assured the committee, and instead only addresses those instances in which animals are not being cared for properly. In conclusion, he asked members to support HB 179 - joining him in taking a strong stand against serial animal cruelty. CHAIR GATTO noted that proposed AS 11.61.140(a)(8) read: (8) with criminal negligence, contemporaneously fails to care for five or more animals and, as a result, causes the death of five or more animals or causes severe physical pain or prolonged suffering to five or more animals. REPRESENTATIVE LYNN, in response to questions, acknowledged that if the behavior outlined in proposed AS 11.61.140(a)(8) was directed at only four animals, it would still be a violation for each animal but each violation would remain a class A misdemeanor; assured the committee that the bill is only addressing contemporaneous behavior rather than cumulative behavior; and explained that when deciding what the threshold should be for contemporaneous neglect, five animals appeared to be the most appropriate and practical number. CHAIR GATTO acknowledged that having to address such instances of mass animal neglect as occurred in Willow could overwhelm any animal-care facility and its community. REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES noted that under existing AS 11.61.140(h), if within the prior 10 years a person has been convicted of violating AS 11.61.140(a)(2) - which addresses the neglect of one animal - then any current conviction would then be a class C felony; AS 11.61.140(a)(2) reads: (2) with criminal negligence, fails to care for an animal and, as a result, causes the death of the animal or causes severe physical pain or prolonged suffering to the animal; REPRESENTATIVE HOLMES, in response to comments, offered her understanding that in a domestic violence (DV) situation, if behavior as severe as that outlined in paragraph (2) were instead directed towards a person - thereby causing his/her death or severe physical pain or prolonged suffering - it would warrant a felony charge. 1:15:51 PM THOMAS REIKER, Staff, Representative Bob Lynn, Alaska State Legislature, on behalf of the sponsor, Representative Lynn, in response to a question regarding the disposal of unwanted animals, noted that existing AS 11.61.140(a)(2) requires that the behavior be conducted with criminal negligence. 1:17:02 PM ANNE CARPENETI, Assistant Attorney General, Legal Services Section, Criminal Division, Department of Law (DOL), explained that in Alaska, animals are considered property and as such a person is not precluded under AS 11.61.140(a) from causing the death of his/her animal as long as it's done in a humane manner. For example, a person may not kill an animal by knowingly inflicting severe and prolonged physical pain or suffering, [by failing to provide care,] or via the use of a decompression chamber or poison. Shooting an unwanted animal would probably be fine, she ventured, but surmised that whether drowning an unwanted animal would be illegal would depend on the circumstances, though it probably wouldn't be considered as resulting in prolonged physical pain or suffering. REPRESENTATIVE GRUENBERG disclosed that he [is married to] the next testifier. 1:19:25 PM KAYLA EPSTEIN, Member, Animal Control Advisory Board (ACAB), Animal Care & Control Center, Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Municipality of Anchorage (MOA), after expressing appreciation for the progress made thus far with regard to [preventing animal cruelty], noted that instances of multiple-animal neglect place a large burden on local government. For example, one recent animal-neglect case her organization dealt with involved caring for 8 dogs, 23 cats, and 1 bird for over a year at an estimated cost of over $77,000 - which was only even that low due to donations of food, shelter, and medical care - with the resulting conviction eventually allowing for the additional removal of approximately 50 more animals from another location. That case, she relayed, was a nightmare in terms of logistics, expenses, and the emotional pain experienced by both the staff and volunteers who had to care for those sick and dying animals. In conclusion, she urged passage of HB 179, characterizing it as a logical step towards fixing a true problem, though she mentioned that in addressing the issue of criminal neglect - not simply stupid neglect or ignorant neglect - her organization regrets that the bill's proposed threshold for a felony crime is five animals, and suggested that that proposed threshold should instead be three animals. 1:22:44 PM DEBORA GAIL GARDNER, Commissioner, Animal Control Commission, Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB); Volunteer, Pet Pride Cat Rescue; Volunteer, Spay Neuter Your Pet, said she is in support of HB 179, and that she agrees with the comments of the representative from the ACAB that HB 179 is a good start. She remarked, though, that it would be nice to see any kind of criminal negligence [of animals] be a felony, adding that caring for such neglected animals is overwhelming, heartbreaking work. Particularly for cats, such criminal negligence amounts to a death sentence. In conclusion, she reiterated that she supports HB 179. 1:23:59 PM RONNIE ROSENBERG, President, Fairbanks Animal Shelter Fund; Commissioner, Chair, Animal Control Commission, Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB), after mentioning that the Fairbanks Animal Shelter Fund provides support for the Fairbanks North Star Borough's animal shelter, and that she has been active in animal control issues in Alaska for over 15 years, relayed that over the years, there have been several cases involving breeders, hoarders, and other individuals who have been neglecting or abusing large numbers of animals. Because of the prevalence of such incidents, she opined, it's really important for HB 179 to pass. Having to intake these large numbers of abused and neglected animals puts a tremendous burden - including a large financial burden - on shelters, and causes disruption in the community. She offered her belief that providing for the enhanced sentencing associated with a felony charge makes sense, particularly for those who torture their animals, or who for days on end, for no apparent reason, don't feed or care for their animals in any reasonable fashion. She said she agrees with the DOL representative that shooting one's unwanted animal isn't a crime in Alaska, pointing out that in rural areas of the state, it can be the only way of managing an overpopulation situation. In conclusion, she urged passage of HB 179. CHAIR GATTO mentioned that members' packets include a letter from the executive director of the Alaska Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Alaska SPCA), and that that letter's last sentence read, "We are very grateful to all of you for your interest and hard work on behalf of animals, and hope that you will take HB 179 just one more notch to make it truly effective and meaningful for those creatures who depend entirely upon your decisions for their very lives." CHAIR GATTO, after ascertaining that no one else wished to testify, closed public testimony on HB 179. 1:27:55 PM DOUGLAS GARDNER, Director, Legal Services, Legislative Legal and Research Services, Legislative Affairs Agency (LAA), in response to questions, offered his understanding that under the bill, prosecutors would have discretion with regard to whether to charge a person who'd criminally neglected five or more animals with a felony under proposed paragraph (8), or with a misdemeanor for each criminally-neglected animal under existing AS 11.61.140(b); that judges would retain discretion with regard to sentencing, including considering the effects associated with felony convictions compared to misdemeanor convictions, and whether to apply the rule of lenity; and that if a person acts intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly, the requirement under existing AS 11.61.140(a)(2) and proposed AS 11.61.140(a)(8) that the person act with criminal negligence would be met, since criminal negligence is the lowest mental state provided for under Alaska's criminal statutes. In response to other questions, he, too, agreed that humanely shooting one's own unwanted animals, regardless of how many, would not be a crime under Alaska law, and surmised that whether a situation involving a breeder would warrant a felony charge under proposed AS 11.61.140(a)(8) would depend on the circumstances, evidence of causation, expert testimony, and prosecutorial discretion. CHAIR GATTO expressed strong disfavor with "puppy mills." 1:44:03 PM REPRESENTATIVE THOMPSON moved to report HB 179 out of committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying [indeterminate] fiscal notes. There being no objection, HB 179 was reported from the House Judiciary Standing Committee.