An act to amend Section 597 of the Penal Code, relating to animals, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.
Existing law prohibits, subject to exceptions, specified acts of animal abuse including, among others, the malicious and intentional maiming, mutilation, torture, or wounding of a living animal. Under existing law, a violation of those provisions is punishable as a felony by imprisonment in a county jail for 16 months, or 2 or 3 years, or by a fine of not more than $20,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment, or alternatively, as a misdemeanor by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than $20,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment.
This bill would require a person who violates the animal abuse prohibitions described above to be punished by a fine of not more than $5,000 for each violation, in addition to the fines described above. The bill would require those additional fines to be paid to the local public animal control agency that has jurisdiction over the location where the violation occurred. The bill would generally require authorize the agency to use the moneys paid as a fine to compensate the owner or caretaker of an animal that requires medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery as a result of a violation of the animal abuse prohibitions described above for the costs incurred by the owner or caretaker for the animal’s medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery. a person who incurs costs for the animal’s medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery, if the owner or caretaker of the animal was the person who violated the animal abuse prohibitions described above. The bill would also require, in addition to any other penalty provided by law, a person who violates the animal abuse prohibitions described above in a rehabilitative facility for animals to pay for and successfully complete an appropriate counseling course, as determined by the court, designed to evaluate and treat behavior or conduct disorders. The bill would define “rehabilitative facility for animals” for these purposes as a facility at which medical care or rehabilitative services are provided to animals, including, but not limited to, an animal sanctuary, animal shelter, or aquarium. By increasing the penalties for existing crimes and increasing the duties of a public animal control agency relative to the use of the moneys paid as a fine, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(c) A person who maliciously and intentionally maims, mutilates, or tortures a mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian, or fish, as described in subdivision (e), is guilty of a crime punishable pursuant to subdivision (d).
(d) (1) A violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) is punishable as a felony by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, or by a fine of not more than twenty thousand dollars ($20,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment, or alternatively, as a misdemeanor by imprisonment in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than twenty thousand dollars ($20,000), or by both that fine and imprisonment.
(2) (A) A person who violates subdivision (a), (b), or (c) shall, in addition to the fines imposed pursuant to paragraph (1), be punished by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each violation.
(B) The fines required by subparagraph (A) shall be paid to the local public animal control agency that has jurisdiction in the location where the violation was committed.
(C)Except as provided in subparagraph (E), the local public animal control agency shall use the moneys paid as a fine pursuant subparagraph (A) to compensate the owner or caretaker, including a nonprofit organization, of an animal that requires medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery as a result of a violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) for the costs incurred by the owner or caretaker for the animal’s medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery.
(D) (i) If the owner or caretaker of an animal that requires medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery as a result of a violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) is the person who violated any of those subdivisions, the owner or caretaker shall not receive money from the local public animal control agency, and instead, moneys paid to the agency as a fine pursuant to subparagraph (A) may be used to compensate another a person, including a nonprofit organization, who incurs costs for the animal’s medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery.
(ii) If an animal that requires medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery as a result of a violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) has no identifiable owner or caretaker, the local public animal control agency may use moneys paid to the agency as a fine pursuant to subparagraph (A) to compensate a person, including a nonprofit organization, who incurs costs for the animal’s medical care, rehabilitation, or recovery.
(3) (A) Except as provided in subdivision (h), a person who violates subdivision (a), (b), or (c) in a rehabilitative facility for animals shall, in addition to any other penalty provided by law, pay for and successfully complete an appropriate counseling course, as determined by the court, designed to evaluate and treat behavior or conduct disorders. If the court finds that a defendant is financially unable to pay for that counseling, the court may develop a sliding fee schedule based upon the defendant’s ability to pay. An indigent defendant may negotiate a deferred payment schedule, but shall pay a nominal fee if the defendant has the ability to pay the nominal fee. If an indigent defendant cannot pay the nominal fee, the fee shall be waived.
(B) For purposes of this paragraph, “rehabilitative facility for animals” means a facility at which medical care or rehabilitative services are provided to animals, including, but not limited to, an animal sanctuary, animal shelter, or aquarium.
(e) (1) Subdivision (c) applies to a mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian, or fish that is a creature described as follows:
(A) Endangered species or threatened species as described in Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 2050) of Division 3 of the Fish and Game Code.
(C) Fully protected mammals described in Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 4700) of Part 3 of Division 4 of the Fish and Game Code.
(D) Fully protected reptiles and amphibians described in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 5050) of Division 5 of the Fish and Game Code.
(2) This subdivision does not supersede or affect any law relating to taking of the described species, including, but not limited to, Section 12008 of the Fish and Game Code.
(f) For the purposes of subdivision (c), each act of malicious and intentional maiming, mutilating, or torturing a separate specimen of a creature described in subdivision (e) is a separate offense. If a person is charged with a violation of subdivision (c), the proceedings shall be subject to Section 12157 of the Fish and Game Code.
(h) Notwithstanding any other law, if a defendant is granted probation for a conviction under this section, the court shall order the defendant to pay for, and successfully complete, counseling, as determined by the court, designed to evaluate and treat behavior or conduct disorders. If the court finds that the defendant is financially unable to pay for that counseling, the court may develop a sliding fee schedule based upon the defendant’s ability to pay. An indigent defendant may negotiate a deferred payment schedule, but shall pay a nominal fee if the defendant has the ability to pay the nominal fee. County mental health departments or Medi-Cal shall be responsible for the costs of counseling required by this section only for those persons who meet the medical necessity criteria for mental health managed care pursuant to Section 1830.205 of Title 9 of the California Code of Regulations or the targeted population criteria specified in Section 5600.3 of the Welfare and Institutions Code. The counseling specified in this subdivision shall be in addition to any other terms and conditions of probation, including any term of imprisonment and any fine. This subdivision specifies a mandatory additional term of probation and is not to be utilized as an alternative in lieu of imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 or county jail when that sentence is otherwise appropriate. If the court does not order custody as a condition of probation for a conviction under this section, the court shall specify on the court record the reason or reasons for not ordering custody. This subdivision shall not apply to cases involving police dogs or horses as described in Section 600.
In order to provide victims of animal abuse with restitution for the costs associated with medical care and recovery for animals resulting from that abuse at the earliest possible time, it is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.