FBI said to begin tracking animal cruelty cases
USA Today Network
Susan Wyatt, The Pet Dish
KING-TV, Seattle
September 17, 2014
September 17, 2014
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/09/17/fbi-animal-cruelty-humane-society-wayne-pacelle/15802463/
The FBI will begin tracking animal cruelty cases just as they track other crimes, Wayne Pacelle of The Humane Society of the United States said in a blog post Tuesday.
Pacelle, CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, said John Thompson with the National Sheriffs' Association told him that Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comer has signed off on including animal cruelty offenses in the Uniform Crime Report.
The FBI did not immediately respond with a request for comment.
Local agencies will also track cruelty cases to report to the FBI, said Pacelle's blog.
"No longer will extremely violent cases be included in the "other offense" category simply because the victims were animals. Just as the FBI tracks hate crimes and other important categories, we will now have critical data on animal cruelty," said Pacelle. "
This is a great step in the right direction," said Annette Laico, CEO of Progressive Animal Welfare Society in Lynnwood, Washington.
Pacelle said HSUS has been pushing for the change in policy for years. He said without a reporting requirement, there is no way to track the number of reported incidents of animal cruelty cases each year, which impedes efforts to properly focus enforcement resources and violence prevention programs.
Numerous instances of humans hurting pets -- shared rapidly on social media -- have outraged many Americans.
Desmond Hague, CEO of privately owned Centerplate, a Connecticut-based catering specialist that serves specialty food at sports stadiums, resigned earlier his month after a video appeared to show Hague repeatedly kicking a dog.
The FBI will begin tracking animal cruelty cases just as they track other crimes, Wayne Pacelle of The Humane Society of the United States said in a blog post Tuesday.
Pacelle, CEO of the Humane Society of the United States, said John Thompson with the National Sheriffs' Association told him that Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comer has signed off on including animal cruelty offenses in the Uniform Crime Report.
The FBI did not immediately respond with a request for comment.
Local agencies will also track cruelty cases to report to the FBI, said Pacelle's blog.
"No longer will extremely violent cases be included in the "other offense" category simply because the victims were animals. Just as the FBI tracks hate crimes and other important categories, we will now have critical data on animal cruelty," said Pacelle. "
This is a great step in the right direction," said Annette Laico, CEO of Progressive Animal Welfare Society in Lynnwood, Washington.
Pacelle said HSUS has been pushing for the change in policy for years. He said without a reporting requirement, there is no way to track the number of reported incidents of animal cruelty cases each year, which impedes efforts to properly focus enforcement resources and violence prevention programs.
Numerous instances of humans hurting pets -- shared rapidly on social media -- have outraged many Americans.
Desmond Hague, CEO of privately owned Centerplate, a Connecticut-based catering specialist that serves specialty food at sports stadiums, resigned earlier his month after a video appeared to show Hague repeatedly kicking a dog.
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