The Federal Bureau of Investigation has added animal cruelty to its list of top-tier felonies and will now track animal offenders like other violators of federal crimes.
The news was hailed by activists who had campaigned for the change to elevate the priority of the issue and step up crime-fighting efforts against individuals who abuse animals.
“It will help get better sentences, sway juries and make for better plea bargains,” said Madeline Bernstein, president and CEO of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles. Bernstein, a former New York prosecutor, added: “The category also will help identify young offenders, and a defendant might realize if he gets help now, he won’t turn into Jeffrey Dahmer.”
Wayne Pacelle of the Humane Society of the United States also praised the FBI action. “No longer will extremely violent cases be included in the ‘other offense’ category simply because the victims were animals. Just as the FBI tracks hate crimes and other important categories, we will now have critical data on animal cruelty,” he said.
The FBI says law enforcement agencies will now have to report incidents and arrests in four areas: simple or gross neglect; intentional abuse and torture; organized abuse, including dogfighting and cockfighting; and animal sexual abuse.
“The immediate benefit is it will be in front of law enforcement every month when they have to do their crime reports. That’s something we have never seen,” said John Thompson of the National Sheriffs’ Association.
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