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Welcome First State-wide Public Animal Abuse Registry

Welcome First State-wide Public Animal Abuse Registry

 

Let’s Improve the Lives of Animals Across Tennessee

This past spring, Tennessee passed and signed into law the Tennessee Animal Abuser Registration Act which seeks to publicly name those convicted of animal abuse charges.

Amber Mullins, of the Humane Society of Tennessee Valley states that “The registry is public record so any shelter, rescue group or any member of the general public can look through the list on the website before finalizing an adoption or rehoming a pet. A public registry like this will hopefully serve as a deterrent to those who are about to commit a crime.”

The registry, which intends to be active as of January 1, 2016 will publicly name those convicted of animal abuse for up to two years, with any subsequent convictions upping that time to five years.

But is this enough? What happens if someone, for example, burns a cat alive and is found guilty? Their name is only put on this registry for two years? Why not permanently keep their name on this list? The last thing anyone wants is a convicted animal abuser walking into a shelter after their two year registration anniversary is over and harming another animal.

This registry will set a great example for the rest of the country, but it could do even more by increasing the time of names remaining on the registry from two and five years to be permanent.

Great step forward Tennessee! Just keep going with that momentum!

Learn more about the registry here.

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