Requires that the district attorney in each county appoint at least one assistant district attorney to be responsible for overseeing the prosecution of animal crimes.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1639
SPONSOR: Rosenthal L TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the county law, in relation to requiring the appointment
of an assistant district attorney in each county to oversee prosecution
of animal crimes
PURPOSE:
This legislation will require each county to have an assistant district
attorney appointed to oversee animal crimes.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one amends the county law is amended by adding a new section
702-b.
Section two provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Violent behavior toward animals is often predictive of future violent
behavior toward people. There exists now a well-established link between
cruelty to animals and cruelty to humans, it is important that animal
cruelty crimes are taken seriously to protect animals, but also to
protect people. Despite the clear link between animal cruelty and domes-
tic violence and other violent behavior. cruelty crimes against animals
is rarely given the attention it deserves by law enforcement. Animal
cruelty laws are not adequately enforced statewide and when an individ-
ual is charged with serious felony-level cruelty crimes, it is often
pleaded down to a misdemeanor or a violation.
In New York State, Queens County established an Animal Crimes Prose-
cution Unit in 2016 with a sole focus on investigating, prosecuting and
preventing animal cruelty crimes. Since then, Albany, Nassau and New
York Counties have each designated assistant district attorneys to over-
see the prosecution of animal crimes. These expert-level prosecutors
provide increased attention to animal crimes which results in greater
protection of animals and humans alike. This legislation would require
each county in the state to have an assistant district attorney
appointed to oversee the prosecution of animal cruelty crimes.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Undetermined.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-22: A.7267 - Referred to Local Governments
EFFECTIVE DATE:
90 days.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1639
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 17, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Local Governments
AN ACT to amend the county law, in relation to requiring the appointment
of an assistant district attorney in each county to oversee prose-
cution of animal crimes
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The county law is amended by adding a new section 702-b to
2 read as follows:
3 § 702-b. Appointment of assistant district attorneys for animal
4 crimes. The district attorney in each county shall appoint at least one
5 assistant district attorney to be responsible for overseeing the prose-
6 cution of animal crimes, including, but not limited to, animal crimes
7 committed in violation of article twenty-six of the agriculture and
8 markets law.
9 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
10 have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05566-01-3
