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LEGAL ALERT : Senator T. Kean, Jr has sponsored Senate Bill S1303 called Patrick’s Law …… This bill, designated as “Patrick’s Law,” increases to crimes of the fourth degree, the offenses of depriving an animal of necessary sustenance, or abusing an animal, and it increases the grade of these offenses to crimes of the third degree if the animal dies as a result of these acts. The civil penalty for these offenses would also be increased under the bill to a fine of $1,000 to $3,000 for a first offense, and $3,000 to $5,000 for a second or subsequent offense. The bill would additionally increase the criminal and civil penalties for the following offenses: 1) inflicting unnecessary cruelty upon a living animal or creature, by any direct or indirect means, including but not limited to through the use of another living animal or creature; 2) unnecessarily failing to provide a living animal or creature of which the person has charge either as an owner or otherwise with proper food, drink, shelter or protection from the weather; or 3) leaving it unattended in a vehicle under inhumane conditions adverse to the health or welfare of the living animal or creature. The criminal penalty would be increased to a fine of not less than $500 nor more than $2,000, or imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or both, at the discretion of the court. If an animal is needlessly killed or dies as a result of one of these violations, or the person has a prior conviction for a violation of this provision, the person would be guilty of a crime of the fourth degree. The civil penalty recoverable under R.S.4:22-26 would be increased to a fine of $500 to $2,000. Furthermore, the bill requires that court-ordered restitution include the monetary cost of replacing the animal if it died or had to be euthanized because of the extent of its injuries, in addition to reimbursement of any costs for food, drink, shelter, or veterinary care or treatment, or other costs. The bill clarifies that the reimbursement would be for costs incurred by the owner of the animal, if the owner is not the person committing the act of cruelty. This bill is being introduced in response to the treatment of Patrick, a pit bull in Newark, who after being starved to an extremely emaciated condition, was placed in a garbage bag, and dropped down a garbage chute in an apartment complex in that city. The dog is now being cared for and recuperating after a maintenance person in the building collecting garbage noticed movement in one of the garbage bags and found the dog still alive inside.