Help South Dakota pass felony companion animal cruelty laws! sdfact@gmail.com

Currently, South Dakota is one of only two states (including North Dakota) with no  felony level penalties for egregious acts of companion animal cruelty. JOIN US TO SPEAK UP, SPREAD THE WORD & ASK LEGISLATORS TO MAKE THIS A PRIORITY! SD FACT = South Dakotans Fighting Animal Cruelty Together. We're a community of South Dakotans working to pass realistic animal cruelty laws in our state for companion animals.


We'll provide you with the real facts. Far too many animal cruelty cases go unreported, some are not prosecuted and others turn out like this recent SD case…. In June 2011, a Burbank South Dakota man beat his neighbors’ dog to death in its kennel with a hammer. A neighbor saw the man leaving the dog’s kennel. The man plead guilty to two Class 1 misdemeanors and was ordered to pay a fine of $300 plus $84 in court costs for each count. He received no jail time or counseling, even though the crime was malicious and violent.
People who abuse and kill animals are more likely to target human victims - there is a documented link between animal cruelty and human violence. Passing felony animal cruelty laws is a crucial step in ensuring community safety in South Dakota.

SOUTH DAKOTA VOTERS FOR COMPANION ANIMALS
Recent horrific animal cruelty cases in South Dakota that resulted in only misdemeanor charges due to lack of felony laws:

Lead:  Dog found shot (no charges pending until violator found)

http://www.bhpioneer.com/local_news/article_1873a30c-dbf1-11e1-9493-0019bb2963f4.html

 Yankton:  Woman beats cat to death with hammer

http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/19222/SD/US/

 Rapid City:  Dog sexually assaulted (this did result in felony charges)

http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/16759/SD/US/

 Burbank:  Dog Beaten to death with hammer

http://www.kdlt.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=10304&Itemid=57http://www.yankton.net/articles/2011/08/13/community/doc4e45eb9a44a20686551130.txt

 Contact your Legislators and tell them you support a law making egregious acts of animal cruelty a felony in our beautiful state.