NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A5192
SPONSOR: Tannousis TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to penal-
ties for causing the death of an animal
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to elevate the penalty for killing an animal
while exhibiting cruelty toward that animal.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1.adds § 352 to the agriculture and markets law which creates
the offense of causing the death of an animal.
Section 2 removes the killing of an animal from § 353 of the agriculture
and.markets law.
Section 3 removes the killing of an animal from § 353-a .of the agricul-
ture and markets law.
JUSTIFICATION:
Currently, the penalties are the same for causing serious physical inju-
ry and causing death to an animal. The penalty should be more severe if
the animal is killed by the conduct exhibited by the defendant.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
3021 A7135 Referred to Agriculture FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
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5192
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 3, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. TANNOUSIS -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Agriculture
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to penal-
ties for causing the death of an animal
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The agriculture and markets law is amended by adding a new
2 section 352 to read as follows:
3 § 352. Causing the death of an animal. A person is guilty of causing
4 the death of an animal, when he or she commits a crime under section
5 three hundred fifty-three or section three hundred fifty-three-a of this
6 article, and such conduct results in the death of an animal. Causing
7 the death of an animal is a class D felony.
8 § 2. The opening paragraph of section 353 of the agriculture and
9 markets law, as amended by chapter 523 of the laws of 2005, is amended
10 to read as follows:
11 A person who overdrives, overloads, tortures or cruelly beats or
12 unjustifiably injures, maims, or mutilates [or kills] any animal, wheth-
13 er wild or tame, and whether belonging to himself or to another, or
14 deprives any animal of necessary sustenance, food or drink, or neglects
15 or refuses to furnish it such sustenance or drink, or causes, procures
16 or permits any animal to be overdriven, overloaded, tortured, cruelly
17 beaten, or unjustifiably injured, maimed, mutilated [or killed], or to
18 be deprived of necessary food or drink, or who wilfully sets on foot,
19 instigates, engages in, or in any way furthers any act of cruelty to any
20 animal, or any act tending to produce such cruelty, is guilty of a class
21 A misdemeanor and for purposes of paragraph (b) of subdivision one of
22 section 160.10 of the criminal procedure law, shall be treated as a
23 misdemeanor defined in the penal law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05210-01-3
A. 5192 2
1 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 353-a of the agriculture and markets
2 law, as added by chapter 118 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as
3 follows:
4 1. A person is guilty of aggravated cruelty to animals when, with no
5 justifiable purpose, he or she [intentionally kills or] intentionally
6 causes serious physical injury to a companion animal with aggravated
7 cruelty. For purposes of this section, "aggravated cruelty" shall mean
8 conduct which: (i) is intended to cause extreme physical pain; or (ii)
9 is done or carried out in an especially depraved or sadistic manner.
10 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
