Chapter 7.36
ANIMAL CRUELTY
Sections:
7.36.015 Civil animal cruelty – Prohibited acts.
7.36.025 Criminal animal cruelty – Prohibited acts.
7.36.045 Charging cruelty offenses.
7.36.050 Poisoning of animals.
7.36.010 Definitions.
(1) “Abandoned” means placing an animal in the custody of a veterinarian, boarding kennel owners, or any person for treatment, board, or care, either for an unspecified time and failing to remove the animal after 15 days’ notice, or for a specified time and failing to remove the animal at the end of the specified period.
(2) “Animal control officer” means any person or agency designated by the city as a law enforcement officer or quasi-law enforcement officer who is authorized to implement the provisions of this chapter and this title.
(3) “Necessary food” means the provision at suitable intervals of wholesome foodstuff suitable for the animal’s age and species and sufficient to provide a reasonable level of nutrition for the animal.
(4) “Owner” means any person, firm, corporation, organization, or department in possession of, harboring, keeping, having an interest in, or having control or custody of an animal. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015; Ord. 1477 § 2, 2006).
7.36.015 Civil animal cruelty – Prohibited acts.
(1) Any person is guilty of civil animal cruelty if the person does any of the following:
(a) Inflicts suffering or pain upon an animal, except as otherwise authorized by law; or
(b) Teases, tantalizes or provokes any animal with the intent to cause destructive behavior, fear or hostility; or
(c) Keeps an animal in an unsanitary condition.
(2) Any owner of an animal is guilty of civil animal cruelty if the owner does any of the following:
(a) Fails to provide the animal with necessary food, water, shelter, rest, sanitation, ventilation, space, or medical attention and the animal suffers unnecessary or unjustifiable physical pain as a result of the failure; or
(b) Abandons the animal. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015).
7.36.020 Civil penalty.
(1) A person who violates OHMC 7.36.015 commits a civil violation.
(2) As part of a civil remedy the court shall order the forfeiture of the offender’s interest in any animal that was the basis for the violation.
(3) As part of a civil remedy the court may also order:
(a) The offender not to possess or reside with any animal for up to 15 years;
(b) Civil fines in an amount not to exceed $1,000;
(c) Up to 100 hours of non-animal-related community service be performed by the offender;
(d) Psychological or behavioral evaluations and counseling as the court deems fit;
(e) The limitation of the offender’s employment interaction with animals;
(f) Routine visits by an animal control officer to ensure compliance with its order;
(g) Any other relief as the court deems fit. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015).
7.36.025 Criminal animal cruelty – Prohibited acts.
(1) Any person is guilty of criminal animal cruelty if the person, under circumstances not amounting to animal cruelty in the first degree as defined under RCW 16.52.205, as now in effect or as hereafter amended, does any of the following:
(a) Knowingly, recklessly, or with criminal negligence inflicts unnecessary suffering or pain upon an animal; or
(b) Teases, tantalizes or provokes any animal with the intent to cause destructive behavior, fear or hostility; or
(c) Keeps an animal in an unsanitary condition.
(2) Any owner of an animal is guilty of criminal animal cruelty if the owner knowingly, recklessly, or with criminal negligence, under circumstances not amounting to animal cruelty in the first degree as defined under RCW 16.52.205, as now in effect or as hereafter amended, does any of the following:
(a) Fails to provide the animal with necessary food, water, shelter, rest, sanitation, ventilation, space, or medical attention and the animal suffers unnecessary or unjustifiable physical pain as a result of the failure; or
(b) Abandons the animal. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015).
7.36.030 Criminal penalty.
Animal cruelty is a misdemeanor punishable by a maximum of up to 90 days in jail and/or a fine of $1,000. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015).
7.36.040 Affirmative defense.
In any prosecution of animal cruelty, it shall be an affirmative defense, if established by the defendant by a preponderance of the evidence, that the defendant’s failure was due to economic distress beyond the defendant’s control. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015; Ord. 1477 § 5, 2006).
7.36.045 Charging cruelty offenses.
The attorney for the city may elect to charge a defendant with either the civil violation of cruelty to animals under OHMC 7.36.015 or the crime of cruelty to animals under OHMC 7.36.025. In making this election, the attorney for the city shall consider the severity of the cruelty displayed, any prior convictions or adjudications of animal cruelty entered against the defendant, whether there was economic hardship leading to the violation and such other factors as may be relevant to a determination of whether criminal or civil sanctions will best accomplish the goals of the animal welfare laws in the particular case. The election and determination required by this section are not subject to judicial review. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015).
7.36.050 Poisoning of animals.
(1) A person is guilty of the crime of poisoning animals if the person intentionally or knowingly poisons an animal under circumstances which do not constitute animal cruelty in the first degree, such as lying out to expose or leaving exposed any kind of poison or poisoned food or drink where it is accessible to an animal.
(2) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to:
(a) Euthanizing by poison an animal in a lawful and humane manner by the animal’s owner, or by a duly authorized servant or agent of the owner, or by a person acting pursuant to instructions from a duly constituted public authority; or
(b) Reasonable use of rodent or pest poison, insecticides, fungicides or slug bait for their intended purpose.
(3) Poisoning an animal is a gross misdemeanor crime, punishable by a maximum of one year in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. (Ord. 1710 § 8, 2015; Ord. 1477 § 6, 2006).