Enacts "Kirby and Quigley's Law"; expands the definition of aggravated cruelty to animals to include harm to a companion animal during the commission of a felony.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A1633
SPONSOR: Santabarbara TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to expand-
ing the definition of aggravated cruelty to animals to include harm to
animals during the commission of a felony
PURPOSE:
To enhance laws relating to animal cruelty by including harm caused
during the commission of a felony or flight there from.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Subdivision 1 of section 353-a of the agriculture and markets law, is
amended to criminalize the physical injury or death of a companion
animal that is caused during the course of commission of a felony or the
immediate flight there from.
JUSTIFICATION:
On the evening of February 17th, 2016, Denise Krohn returned to her
Florida home in Montgomery County, after being out for two hours, to
find her house was broken into and she experienced the horror of seeing
her family's two beloved Goldendoodle dogs, "Kirby" and "Quigley," lying
on the floor in pools of blood from gunshot wounds. In recent years,
cases of drug traffickers cutting open the bellies of puppies to trans-
port liquid heroin into this country opened our eyes to the depths crim-
inals will sink to accomplish their criminal enterprises. Although the
current definition of aggravated cruelty to animals will most likely
apply to the actions of these depraved individuals, we cannot ignore the
potential harm to other innocent animals misused or even killed in the
commission of felonies.
Furthermore, in their total disregard for the lives of pets, arsonists
and burglars often perpetrate horrendous acts of cruelty to human
victims by not only destroying or stealing property, but also by harming
their beloved animals that are either left to perish in flames or harmed
by other means in their attempt to protect their masters from intruders.
This bill enhances aggravated cruelty to animals statute by including
specific provisions related to criminal activity, thus allowing society
to hold criminals responsible for the full extent of the harm they
cause.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2017-18: A3038B - referred to codes / S1680A - passed the senate
2019-20: A1834 - referred to agriculture / S1680A - referred to domestic
animal welfare
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1633
2021-2022 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 11, 2021
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SANTABARBARA, WALSH, RA, LUPARDO, BYRNE, McDO-
NOUGH, L. ROSENTHAL, J. RIVERA, LAVINE, ABBATE, GLICK, BRONSON,
STIRPE, COLTON, SEAWRIGHT, PRETLOW, HUNTER, PICHARDO, THIELE, CUSICK,
DAVILA, ENGLEBRIGHT, COOK, OTIS, WEPRIN, PAULIN, GUNTHER, GALEF, BENE-
DETTO, B. MILLER, BLANKENBUSH, NORRIS, MORINELLO, MONTESANO,
J. M. GIGLIO, BRABENEC, JONES, HAWLEY, M. MILLER, DiPIETRO, FITZPA-
TRICK, LALOR, BARCLAY, PALMESANO, BARRETT, FAHY, HEVESI, DICKENS,
BARNWELL, WILLIAMS, DINOWITZ, RODRIGUEZ, VANEL, RICHARDSON -- Multi-
Sponsored by -- M. of A. FRIEND, PHEFFER AMATO, SIMON, WOERNER --
read once and referred to the Committee on Agriculture
AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to expand-
ing the definition of aggravated cruelty to animals to include harm to
animals during the commission of a felony
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as "Kirby and
2 Quigley's Law".
3 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 353-a of the agriculture and markets
4 law, as added by chapter 118 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as
5 follows:
6 1. A person is guilty of aggravated cruelty to animals when[,]: either
7 (a) with no justifiable purpose, he or she intentionally kills or
8 intentionally causes serious physical injury, as defined in subdivision
9 twenty-nine of section one hundred eight of this chapter, to a companion
10 animal with aggravated cruelty[.]; or
11 (b) in the course of commission of a felony, or of immediate flight
12 therefrom, he or she causes intentional physical injury, as defined in
13 subdivision twenty-eight of section one hundred eight of this chapter,
14 or death to a companion animal.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03411-01-1
A. 1633 2
1 For purposes of this section, "aggravated cruelty" shall mean conduct
2 which: (i) is intended to cause extreme physical pain; or (ii) is done
3 or carried out in an especially depraved or sadistic manner.
4 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
