Lawmakers in at least six states are considering longer prison terms and increased fines for those who harm or kill police dogs, despite questions about how the animals are used and their troubled history. The idea has bipartisan support.
In Kansas, the Republican-controlled House on Wednesday ruled that a judge could sentence first-time offenders to five years in prison and fine at least $10,000 for killing dogs used in the Republican-controlled House. A bill sponsored by the party’s top leaders requiring the tax was passed with a vote of 107 to 4. Killing of police, arson investigators, game wardens or search and rescue teams, police horses. Although these crimes are already felonies, they carry a maximum prison term of one year. The maximum fine is $5,000, and the law does not specifically target horses.
Two days ago, Colorado’s Democratic-controlled House of Representatives voted to require people convicted of aggravated cruelty to law enforcement animals to pay at least $2,000 in fines and to reimburse government agencies for the costs of caring for and raising the animals. The bill requiring repayment passed 52-12. replace it. They have already been sentenced to up to six years in prison.
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And on Monday, the Republican-controlled Missouri House gave initial approval to a bill that would increase penalties for harming dogs and horses used by law enforcement, with a final vote expected next week. The penalty for seriously injuring or killing an animal is up to four years in prison, but the bill would increase the penalty to seven years.
Similar bills have been introduced this year in Democratic-led Hawaii as well as Republican-leaning South Carolina and West Virginia.
In South Carolina, Republican Governor Henry McMaster mentioned Rico, a police dog who died along with fallen police officers, firefighters and paramedics, in his State of the State address after attending the dog’s funeral in October. did.
In August, the Chattanooga Police Department hosted a United States Police Canine Association (USPCA) Region 22 “Mini-Trial” at the Moccasin Bend Police Shooting Range in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where K9 dog Dave appeared before a police officer during a criminal arrest trial. Attacks Lucas Timmons. .30th, 2023. (Olivia Ross/Chattanooga Times, Free Press via AP, File)
“At Rico’s funeral, I’ve never seen so many people gather at the police academy. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room,” said McMaster, who got a little emotional hearing Rico’s name. After that, he spoke.
But in Missouri, Black lawmakers have expressed concerns about the bill, suggesting it may be too broad.
“Historically, police animals have been used to impact and frankly harass marginalized communities,” Democratic Rep. Lakisha Bosley, D-St. Louis, said during Monday’s debate.
A final vote in the Missouri House will determine whether the bill is sent to the Senate. The Colorado and Kansas bills were sent to the Senate.
The federal government and other states are taking action on this issue. Under a 2000 federal law, anyone who kills a police dog can be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison. In 2019, the penalty in Florida increased from a maximum of five years in prison to a maximum of 15 years in prison. Tennessee increased its fines in 2022, and Kentucky increased them last year.
Supporters of tougher penalties say these animals cost thousands of dollars to acquire and train, are essential to protecting the public, and are like family to the officers and their relatives who work with them. claims.
At a Kansas House committee hearing earlier this month, Wichita-area sheriff’s deputy Tyler Brooks expressed his condolences for his 8-year-old dog, Bane, who died in November.
“It’s kind of funny that this very large dog, who frequently breaks things and knocks everything over during training, ends up being the dog that overcomes my 7-year-old autistic son’s severe fear of dogs. That’s right,” Brooks told the committee.
Authorities say a suspect in the domestic violence incident took refuge in a storm drain and strangled Bain when deputies sent in a dog to flush him out.
The dog’s death inspired a bill in Kansas that House Speaker Dan Hawkins dubbed “Bain’s Law” shortly after Wednesday’s vote. Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, is sponsoring the bill along with the chairman of the House Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee.
In Monday’s Colorado House debate, rural Republican Rep. Ryan Armagost stood next to Denver-area Democratic Majority Leader Monica Duran to promote the state’s measure.
“It’s a huge blow to any agency to lose an animal that’s part of the team, so I encourage everyone to get behind this, support them, and protect those who protect us,” Almagosto said. Told.
However, injuries caused by police dogs have been widely reported.
In July 2023, a police dog in rural Ohio seriously bit a black truck driver who was on his knees with his hands up, requiring hospital treatment.
Salt Lake City police suspended its dog arrest program in 2020 after a Black man was bitten, and an audit found 27 dog bite incidents in the past two years. And that same year, a black man in Lafayette, Indiana, was placed in a medically induced coma after being mauled by a police dog during an assault arrest.
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During Tuesday’s debate in the Kansas House of Representatives, Democratic Rep. Ford Kerr of Wichita, one of six black members of Congress, cited the incident in Ohio, where authorities arrested peaceful protesters during the civil rights movement. He recalled pointing his dog at black protesters.
Carr also suggested Wichita was defending himself.
“I don’t think any of us would sit by and watch an animal attack us without fighting back,” Kerr said.
