Bill Text: NY A05160 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Enhances penalties for committing multiple animal cruelty offenses.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-01-03 - referred to agriculture [A05160 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A05160-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          5160

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      March 3, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  TANNOUSIS  --  read once and referred to the
          Committee on Agriculture

        AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation  to  penal-
          ties for those committing multiple animal cruelty offenses

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Section 353-a of the agriculture and markets law, as  added
     2  by chapter 118 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
     3    §  353-a.  Aggravated cruelty to animals. 1. (a) A person is guilty of
     4  aggravated cruelty to animals when, with no justifiable purpose,  he  or
     5  she  intentionally kills or intentionally causes serious physical injury
     6  to a companion animal with aggravated cruelty or  (b)  when  he  or  she
     7  commits  an  offense  described  in section three hundred fifty-three of
     8  this article and has been previously convicted of an offense under  such
     9  section within the past ten years. For purposes of this section, "aggra-
    10  vated  cruelty"  shall  mean  conduct  which:   (i) is intended to cause
    11  extreme physical pain; or (ii) is done or carried out in  an  especially
    12  depraved or sadistic manner.
    13    2. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to prohibit or
    14  interfere  in any way with anyone lawfully engaged in hunting, trapping,
    15  or fishing, as provided in article eleven of the environmental conserva-
    16  tion law, the dispatch of rabid or  diseased  animals,  as  provided  in
    17  article  twenty-one of the public health law, or the dispatch of animals
    18  posing a threat to human safety or other animals, where such  action  is
    19  otherwise  legally  authorized,  or  any  properly  conducted scientific
    20  tests, experiments,  or  investigations  involving  the  use  of  living
    21  animals, performed or conducted in laboratories or institutions approved
    22  for  such  purposes  by  the  commissioner of health pursuant to section
    23  three hundred fifty-three of this article.
    24    3. Aggravated cruelty to animals is a felony. A defendant convicted of
    25  this offense shall be [sentenced pursuant to paragraph (b)  of  subdivi-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05141-01-3
        A. 5160                             2

     1  sion  one  of section 55.10 of the penal law provided, however, that any
     2  term of imprisonment imposed for violation of this section  shall  be  a
     3  definite  sentence,  which may not exceed two years] guilty of a class E
     4  felony;  a  defendant  convicted  of  an  offense under paragraph (a) of
     5  subdivision one of this section who has previously been convicted of  an
     6  offense under section three hundred fifty-three of this article shall be
     7  guilty  of  a  class D felony; a defendant convicted of this offense who
     8  has previously been convicted of an offense under this section shall  be
     9  guilty of a class C felony.
    10    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.