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posted by Fnord666 on Monday March 05 2018, @11:01AM   Printer-friendly
from the another-list dept.

Eleven U.S. states have pending animal abuse registry legislation:

Son of Sam, Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer and the Columbine High School shooters are among the infamous criminals who had a history of hurting animals before they went on to target humans, a tendency that's part of what's behind a movement to create public online registries of known animal abusers.

New York is among 11 states with animal abuse registry bills pending in their legislatures, following Tennessee, which started its in 2016 along with a growing number of municipalities in recent years, including New York City, and the counties that include Chicago and Tampa, Florida.

"Animal abuse is a bridge crime," said the sponsor of New York's bill, Republican state Sen. Jim Tedisco, who noted that Nikolas Cruz, accused of killing 17 people in the Parkland, Florida, high school shooting on Feb. 14, reportedly also had a history of shooting small animals.

While the main goal of collecting names of convicted animal abusers is to prevent them from being able to adopt or purchase other animals, registry backers say such lists could also be a way to raise red flags about people who may commit other violent crimes ranging from domestic violence to mass shootings. But some animal welfare advocates, mostly notably the ASPCA, question how effective they can really be.

[Ed's Comment - Original link unreliable, so I have added additional links]
Additional Sources:


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  • (Score: 1) by cocaine overdose on Monday March 05 2018, @01:13PM (6 children)

    First they came for our combustion-based guns, now they're coming for our pellet guns too. Years of battle has shown that a direct confrontation isn't the right way to get what you want. Sneaking around and using sentences that the lower-minded gun-owners will not be able to read between the lines, dastardly.

  • (Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Monday March 05 2018, @03:13PM (4 children)

    by Grishnakh (2831) on Monday March 05 2018, @03:13PM (#647980)

    Why would you need a gun to kill a rat? Have you never heard of a rat trap? It doesn't require a dangerous weapon, but even better, it's a lot more effective. Good luck hitting a rat with any kind of gun; they're not like squirrels or birds, where they're sitting still outside in plain sight, where you can hit them. I don't think I've *ever* seen a wild rat in nature in fact, only scurrying around urban places, and even then only getting a mere glimpse before they're hidden someplace.

    And what could you possibly need to kill squirrels for? Unlike rats, they don't come in your house or other buildings, they just stay outside and eat nuts and such. I guess if you have a nut tree (or a farm of nut trees), too many of them could be a problem, but again traps are surely more effective and safer. If they're eating your bird seed, then just put up a shield so they can't get to it. There's plenty of such things commercially available.

    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by Freeman on Monday March 05 2018, @03:30PM

      by Freeman (732) on Monday March 05 2018, @03:30PM (#647990) Journal

      I recently had need of a rat trap. Caught one or two and one of them that got caught, the thing just got caught by the leg. So, yeah, ideally a rat trap is quick and humane. I put the other out of it's misery with my pellet gun. Thankfully, I was around, heard it's cries, and dealt with it humanely.

      --
      Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 05 2018, @09:15PM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 05 2018, @09:15PM (#648182)

      And what could you possibly need to kill squirrels for?

      Squirrels absolutely wreck the trees in the neighborhoods around me. It's a minor emergency whenever a single one is spotted, and they are executed with extreme prejudice.

      I did catch one in a home-made live-catch trap long ago, but it bit me, so I may be a little nuts.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 05 2018, @10:26PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 05 2018, @10:26PM (#648222)

        Don't worry that's just the rabies talking.

    • (Score: 2) by dry on Wednesday March 07 2018, @06:53AM

      by dry (223) on Wednesday March 07 2018, @06:53AM (#648909) Journal

      Squirrels can move into attics and such. The fix is to seal the holes but if one has developed the habit, sealing doesn't help much and it might need killed.
      There's also an invasive species of squirrel around here. They're twice as big as the native ones and kill the native ones as well as raiding the local song birds nests. Too late now but they should have been killed when they first showed up.

  • (Score: 2) by DannyB on Monday March 05 2018, @03:39PM

    by DannyB (5839) Subscriber Badge on Monday March 05 2018, @03:39PM (#647995) Journal

    Defendant: I object to being accused of animal cruelty. I LOVE animals.

    Judge: The complaint here says that you were seen by multiple witnesses of molesting chipmunks in the park.

    Defendant: I object to being accused of molesting chipmunks in the public park.

    Judge: on what basis?

    Defendant: Threefold your honor

    1. I deny having ever molested a chipmunk, in the public park, alley ways, under bridges, on balconies, or stopped at traffic lights.

    2. I deny having ever molested any other kind of animal at any other location not listed in item 1.

    3. I impugn the reliability of the witnesses; how can you trust a witness who is unable to tell the difference between a chipmunk and a squirrel?

    Judge: what is the difference between a chipmunk and a squirrel?

    Defendant: the primary difference is that a squirrel has a larger, softer tail that feels really good against your skin. I submit these Google Images of chipmunks into evidence. I also submit these photos of squirrels but request that they be sealed or partially redacted because they are unsuitable for publication.

    --
    People today are educated enough to repeat what they are taught but not to question what they are taught.