Last month the Federal Bureau of Investigation quietly changed
its policy by agreeing to add animal cruelty as a distinct offense in the
National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS). The new policy followed
proposals from the National Sheriff’s Association and the Animal Welfare
Institute.
Until now, the FBI classified animal abuse under the
"other" category, with a group of less serious offenses. That made it
difficult for law enforcement agencies and animal welfare groups to monitor,
and fight, the unlawful harming of animals across the country. Now the crime
will have its own felony classification similar to other violent crimes such as
murder, assault and rape. "It will be a Group A offense and a Crime
against Society," the FBI said in a statement provided to The Dodo.
"Criminal activity and gang information will be expanded to include four
types of abuses."
The four categories are: simple/gross neglect; intentional
abuse and torture, organized abuse (ie, dog and cock fighting); and animal
sexual abuse.
What constitutes cruelty? "Intentionally, knowingly,
or recklessly taking an action that mistreats or kills any animal without just
cause, such as torturing, tormenting, mutilation, maiming, poisoning, or
abandonment," the FBI statement said.
Examples of such abuse include failure to provide food,
water, shelter or needed veterinarian care, confining an animal in a way that
is likely to cause injury or death, and inflicting excessive or repeated pain
and suffering.
"This definition does not include proper maintenance
of animals for show or sport; use of animals for food, lawful hunting, fishing
or trapping," the FBI statement added.
While disappointed that the new policy will not cover
industrial animal production and does nothing to reverse so-called
"Ag-Gag" laws — which ban the taking of photos or video inside a
factory farm without permission — animal welfare advocates applauded the move.
"It's an excellent thing and it has two immediate
effects," said John Goodwin, director of animal abuse policy at the Humane
Society of America (HSUS). "First, the fact that the FBI is taking animal
cruelty crimes seriously enough to track them sends a message to all law
enforcement agencies that this is a serious concern and they need to take it
very seriously." The second result will be real-time tracking of animal
abuse in all 50 states, as compiled in monthly crime reports by local law
enforcement. Data reporting will begin in January 2016.
"Accurate data will give people information on what
needs to be done about the problem," Goodwin said. "It can tell us
the geographical range of the crimes and which individuals are committing
them." That information could help alleviate the problem. "There are
different ways to tackle different types of cruelty," Goodwin said. The
answer to neglect, for example, may be better education, acts of torture will
require stronger penalties and serious psychological counseling, while animal
fighting data will show where gambling profits need to be addressed. The new
classification could also put more teeth into the enforcement of animal cruelty
laws on the state level, according to Madeline Bernstein, president and CEO of the
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles. "It will
help get better sentences, sway juries and make for better plea bargains,"
she told the Associated Press. The new classification will also help identify
juvenile offenders, who sometimes go on to harm or kill people. “We’re very,
very pleased. A lot of good things are happening in law enforcement now, and we
can continue to make the world a better place for animals,” said HSUS’s
Goodwin. “But a lot of policy making still needs to be done before we reach the
point of referring to ourselves as a completely humane nation.”
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