Animal Law
- 1. Carriage Horse Protection in New York City
- 2. New York Beats Animal Abuse
- 3. Beware of Breed Bans
- 4. Calgary's Animal Laws Win the Gold
- 5. Animal Welfare Law in New York
- 6. Lab Animal Protection Under Fire
- 7. Humane Law Enforcement in Illinois
- 8. Legal Rights for Animals
- 9. Dangerous Dog Legislation
Animal Welfare Law in New York
Robyn Watts, ASPCA Associate Counsel
Letter of the Law
In May 2000, a concerned citizen called the ASPCA to report suspected animal abuse in Brooklyn, NY. Humane Law Enforcement Officer Paul Romano responded by going to the location to investigate. He observed a young female dog, a shepherd pitbull mix we’ll call Suzy, chained in a yard. Suzy had no food or water, was emaciated and covered with abrasions. She could barely move— she had to drag her hindquarters.
Officer Romano brought Suzy back to the ASPCA Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital, where a veterinarian determined that her back was broken and her spinal cord severed, causing complete paralysis of her rear quarters. It was estimated that the dog had probably been in that condition for a week or more. Our veterinarian determined that the only option to end Suzy’s suffering was euthanasia.
Getting the Bad Guy
Officer Romano’s further investigations uncovered Suzy’s owner, a New York City employee by the name of Shawn LesFlores. LesFlores stated that he was walking the dog when she darted away and was hit by a car. Instead of seeking medical attention for Suzy, or taking her to a shelter to be euthanized, LesFlores admitted to chaining Suzy to a tree stump and leaving her there.
Officer Romano arrested LesFlores, and Brooklyn Assistant District Attorney Gregory Zenon charged him with misdemeanor animal cruelty. Why not a felony? In November 1999 New York State passed a new law making certain kinds of intentional animal cruelty a felony. ADA Zenon was not able to charge the felony because, technically, LesFlores neglected to get medical help for Suzy and did not meet the threshold of intent that the new law requires.
The ASPCA’s government affairs department lobbied for six long years to have this type of horrific animal cruelty—whether committed intentionally or with reckless disregard—made a felony in New York State. Unfortunately, the state legislature was unwilling to pass such legislation, even for companion animals. Instead, the legislature required that three levels of intent be shown for the felony: an act must be intentional, the intent must be to cause extreme physical suffering or death and the act must be performed in a sadistic or depraved manner. While LesFlores did not act with sadistic intent to cause extreme suffering, there is no doubt that his inaction caused the dog extreme suffering; nor that he knew that she would suffer horribly by being left chained in a yard with such severe injuries and no food or water. As Officer Romano says, “Here’s a guy who knew what he was doing—he was out walking the dog at the time she got hurt.”
While ADA Zenon couldn’t charge the felony, he nevertheless pressed the defense for a serious plea bargain. LesFlores pled guilty to a misdemeanor and received one year of intensive supervised probation. He cannot own animals for a year and must participate in the ASPCA’s Violence Intervention Program. This is a strong sentence for a misdemeanor animal cruelty case. Many prosecutors overlook the fact that they can bargain to prohibit a defendant from owning animals for a period of time. To Officer Romano, it’s one of the better sentences he’s seen. “Of course, it would be even better if the defendant had gotten some jail time,” he says. Unfortunately, defendants rarely are sentenced to serve time in jail for misdemeanor animal cruelty.
The ASPCA plans to introduce legislation this fall to amend New York’s law to include cases of abuse like this. State residents should contact their representatives and ask for their support.
Robyn Watts is associate counsel in the ASPCA Legal Department.
Courtesy of
ASPCA
424 East 92nd St.
New York, NY 10128-6804
(212) 876-7700
www.aspca.org
Next in
How You Can Help Pets: Animal Law:
Lab Animal Protection Under Fire
