|
|
Animal Legal Advocates
The number
of animal cruelty and abuse cases that are discovered but
not prosecuted to the full extent of the law are staggering.
This is due in part to understaffed and underfunded animal
control departments in city and county governments, the lack
of resources of district attorneys and other prosecutors have to
pursue these types of cases, and the sheer undetectability
of abuse.
American Pet Cross has established Animal Legal
Advocates as one potential solution to this challenge facing every
community. The purpose of Animal Legal Advocates will be to create
a pro bono effort around the country to recruit local attorneys
to assist in the prosecution of persons charged with animal abuse.
In order to accomplish its mission, Animal Legal Advocates will
focus on the following objectives:
- To recruit and train volunteers to file
both civil and criminal lawsuits using the existing
animal cruelty statutes in cooperation with local attorneys charged with the enforcement of
those statutes.
- To cooperate fully with existing animal
rights organizations such as the Animal Defense League
to supplement and enhance the already ongoing efforts
by these organizations.
- To establish an Animal Law Center, a
pro bono, non-profit organization in each city or
county where possible to provide a central
location, organization, and administrative support
function for the prosecution of these cases.
- To add to the emerging field of animal law and
to further develop the body of law necessary to protect the
rights of animals and their owners.
- To lobby officials on a city, county,
and local level to add to the protective statutes
already in existence and to urge funding of additional
support resources such as animal cruelty officers.
- To lobby for state and federal standards
regarding the operation of kennel and boarding businesses and
the operators who run them.
- To lobby for state and federal standards
regarding the business of breeding, and the
elimination of puppy mills and farms.
- To lobby for state and federal standards
regarding the operation of pets for sale businesses and other
enterprises where animals are sold to the general
public.
- To lobby for the creation of a national
PET OFFENDER DATABASE, where those charged with animal
cruelty, neglect, or abuse are identified to
inform the public and protect animals from future harmful acts.
- To lobby city and state authorities to
create regulations or statutes that would allow local
animal control organizations to levy fines and penalties
against convicted animal abusers, in order to create
restitution obligations for anyone whom public
resources have been spent in order to correct
wrongdoings.
|
