In the wake of an attack on a marine wildlife rehabilitation facility in Laguna Beach, five legislators have authored a bill that was introduced Wednesday to increase the penalties for animal cruelty.
The attack last month on the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, in which someone sloshed large amounts of chlorine into a pool where 17 sea lions were being treated, angered the community and animal rights activists and prompted the legislation.
It takes a certain depravity to commit deliberate harm to an animal in protective care.
“It takes a certain depravity to commit deliberate harm to an animal in protective care,” a written summary of the bill said.
The marine mammal center has received numerous donations and several organizations have offered rewards for information on the case.
Assembly Bill 1543 would seek restitution on behalf of the animals injured at places such as the Laguna Beach center, levying a $5,000 fine per count of animal cruelty, according to a fact sheet issued by one of the
The fine would be in addition to the animal cruelty penalty of up to $20,000 that can already be imposed under both state and federal law.
The proposed law also would require anyone found guilty of such “violent acts against animals” to undergo, and pay for, counseling that would be determined by a judge.
via California lawmakers propose harsher penalties for animal cruelty.
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