Should animal abusers own pets? This Louisville proposal will ban it

Darcy Costello
Courier Journal

Animal abusers convicted in court would be barred from owning new pets — and listed in a publicly available registry like those for sex offenders — under a proposed Louisville Metro Council ordinance.

Councilman Brandon Coan, the sponsor, says the legislation would help strengthen Kentucky's dismal animal protection laws. An idea for a similar registry proposed in the state legislature this year didn't pass, and Coan said Louisville shouldn't wait for the state to take action. 

Members of the council's public safety committee discussed the proposal during a Wednesday meeting.

Under the proposal, someone who is convicted of an animal abuse offense or pleads guilty to such a crime would be expected to self-report to Louisville Metro Animal Services so they could be included on a public registry of offenders. The registry would list their name, age, address, photograph and a description of the crime. 

Pet stores and shelters would be required to check the registry before allowing someone to adopt or buy a pet.

Coan, who has a 12-year-old dog named Olive and a Russian blue cat named Smokey, said the registry could serve as an "intelligence tool" for law enforcement officials who might be investigating domestic violence or child abuse. 

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Those who support registries, which have been proposed in a number of states and municipalities, say such lists can raise red flags about people who may commit other violent crimes, according to the Associated Press. Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer and the Columbine High School shooters all had histories of hurting animals before they went on to target humans.

But animal welfare groups are somewhat divided on the issue.

The national American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals says in a position statement that while the intention behind registries is noble, they do little in practice to protect animals, and can carry unintended consequences.

And earlier this year, Leighann Lassiter, of the Humane Society of the United States, told the AP that while her organization agrees with the motivation behind registries, it’s already possible to do a nationwide criminal background check on a potential pet adopter, which would reveal not only cruelty convictions, but also other violent crimes.

In Louisville, Metro Animal Services supports the proposed ordinance, spokeswoman Teeya Barnes said, but also hopes it will spur a push for a statewide registry.

LMAS Director Ozzy Gibson later added that he supports the idea of the registry but wants to ensure it's functionally is useful for local shelters and pet stores who would be required to do checks.

Similar measures have passed the counties that encompass Chicago and Tampa, Florida, as well as Nassau County on New York's Long Island and the state of Tennessee.

Coan's proposal calls for those on Louisville's list to pay $100 annually, which the Democrat said would go toward funding the administration of the registry. (It includes a clause that allows the government to waive that fee based on the offender's finances.)

Animal Services would administer the registry, which would be updated every 30 days, and be responsible for ensuring that everyone who should be on the list is on it. People who don't register or who are on the registry but have pets would face civil penalties.

Metro Animal Services was involved in about eight or nine investigations that resulted in convictions or guilty pleas in 2017, Gibson said. So far in 2018, there have been about five. But, Gibson added, other agencies like Louisville Metro Police or other small police departments could have additional investigations that LMAS may not be involved in.

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Councilwoman Julie Denton, a Republican, said she was concerned about expecting offenders to self-report their crimes and worried the proposal might endanger employees at pet stores or shelters who turn away an animal abuser who might then become violent. 

She and other members also asked questions about the spectrum of crimes that fall under "animal neglect." Neglect could be subjective and include those convicted of crimes like not feeding their pets, Denton said.

Kentucky ranks last in the country for its regulations protecting animals, according to the Animal Legal Defense Fund, which judges state laws based on how comprehensive and strong they are. 

A 2017 report points out what the legal defense fund considers several weak spots in Kentucky's current law, including: no felony provision for neglect or abandonment, inadequate definitions of basic care, no statutory authority for protective orders to include animals and no restrictions on future ownership of animals following a conviction, among others. 

"I don't think we can wait around for the state on a lot of issues," Coan said. "This is one in particular that I think transcends partisanship and is really important because people in public safety, criminal justice or social work know the correlation between animal abuse, domestic violence and child abuse."

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Darcy Costello: 502-582-4834; dcostello@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @dctello. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: www.courier-journal.com/darcyc.