Chapter 458

2016 -- S 2657 SUBSTITUTE A Enacted 07/12/2016

A N   A C T

RELATING TO ANIMALS AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY -- CRUELTY TO ANIMALS

Introduced By: Senators Ruggerio, Lynch Prata, Sosnowski, Coyne, and Archambault

Date Introduced: February 25, 2016

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Sections 4-1-2 and 4-1-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 4-1 entitled

"Cruelty to Animals" are hereby amended to read as follows:

4-1-2. Overwork, mistreatment, or failure to feed animals -- Shelter defined. -- (a)

Whoever overdrives, overloads, drives when overloaded, overworks, tortures, torments, deprives

of necessary sustenance, cruelly beats, mutilates or cruelly kills, or causes or procures to be so

overdriven, overloaded, driven when overloaded, overworked, tortured, tormented, deprived of

necessary sustenance, cruelly beaten, or mutilated, or cruelly killed, any animal, and whoever,

having the charge or custody of any animal, either as owner or otherwise, inflicts cruelty upon

that animal, or willfully fails to provide that animal with proper food, drink, shelter, or protection

from the weather, shall, for each offense, be imprisoned not exceeding eleven (11) months, or be

fined not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) nor exceeding five hundred dollars ($500), or both. If the

offense described in this section results in the death of the animal, the person shall be punished in

the manner provided in §4-1-5.

(b) Every owner, possessor, or person having charge of any animal may, upon conviction

of a violation of this section, be ordered to forfeit all rights to ownership of the animal to the

animal-control officer of the city or town in which the offense occurred or to a humane society

which that owns and operates the shelter which that provided the subject animal shelter

subsequent to any confiscation of said animal pursuant to this section.

(c) Shelters means a structure used to house any animal which that will provide

sufficient protection from inclement elements for the health and well being of the animal.

4-1-3. Unnecessary cruelty. -- (a) Every owner, possessor, or person having the charge

or custody of any animal, who cruelly drives or works that animal when unfit for labor,; or

cruelly abandons that animal,; or who carries that animal or who fails to provide that animal with

adequate living conditions as defined in § 4-1-1,; or causes that animal to be carried, in or upon

any vehicle or otherwise, in a cruel or inhuman manner,; or willfully, intentionally, maliciously,

recklessly, and/or knowingly authorizes or permits that animal to be subjected to unnecessary

torture, suffering, or cruelty of any kind,; or who places, or causes to have placed, on any animal

any substance that may produce irritation or pain, or that is declared a hazardous substance by the

U.S. food and drug administration or by the state department of health, shall be punished for each

offense in the manner provided in § 4-1-2. If the offense described in this section results in the

death of the animal, the person shall be punished in the manner provided in §4-1-5.

(b) The substances proscribed by subsection (a) do not include any drug having curative

and therapeutic effect for disease in animals and which that is prepared and intended for

veterinary use.

(c) University, college, or hospital research facilities licensed and/or inspected by the

U.S. Department of Agriculture or the U.S. Public Health Service of the department of health and

human services shall be exempt from the provisions of subsection (a) provided that they are in

good standing with the federal agency responsible for licensing or assurance of the facility.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC004870/SUB A

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