Never Give Up - Felony Animal Cruelty is Law in SD!

Today Governor Daugaard signed SB 46 into law, providing felony level penalties for the most egregious acts of animal cruelty. Animal abuse is a heinous crime but it can be much more than that. Sometimes it’s a sign that people are also being abused or soon will be. The proven link between animal cruelty and human violence is well documented, and passing SB 46 is a crucial step in deterring violent offenders, ensuring community safety, and protecting animals. 

As of July 1, prosecutors and judges in South Dakota will have tools they need to deal with the most malicious, willful and intentional acts of animal cruelty. We celebrate this milestone and thank you. After more than 5 years of discussing the issue and introducing legislation only to see it fail, we were able to sit down with other stakeholders and find a compromise.

As Winston Churchill said, “Never give up on something that you can't go a day without thinking about.” We’ve certainly seen more horrific cases of animal cruelty happen in our state and stuck in our minds. So today we honor the animals that motivated all of us to advocate and change South Dakota animal cruelty laws. Maysie, Buddy, Shy and countless others provided us with the determination to see it through. We are South Dakotans Fighting Animal Cruelty Together (SD FACT) and we did it!

Thank you to the South Dakota Legislators who supported SB 46 and Governor Daugaard for signing it into law. Most of all, we thank you, the South Dakota animal advocates who never gave up. It is a good day for animals in South Dakota when we know communities and animals are protected.