Reporting Abuse

YOU HAVE ENCOUNTERED A SITUATION THAT YOU FIND UPSETTING. WHAT DO YOU DO?

First read the Maryland Statute and decide whether the situation meets the criteria of the Statute . If it does then the offender is looking at being possibly arrested and charged with a felony, which is a serious crime. If convicted, the offender can possibly be sentenced to do jail time as well as face fines.

Here are a few of the Felony and Misdemeanor Statutes in the State of Maryland. NOTE: County codes may have variations. Contact your States Attorney's Office or local police precinct for clarification.

Source: Maryland Code : CRIMINAL LAW :
TITLE 10. CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC HEALTH, CONDUCT, AND SENSIBILITIES : SUBTITLE 6. CRIMES RELATING TO ANIMALS :

§ 10-604. Abuse or neglect of animal.
(a) Prohibited.- A person may not:

(1) overdrive or overload an animal;

 

(2) deprive an anmal of necessary sustenance;

 

(3) cause, procure, or authorize an act prohibited under item (1) or item (2) of this subsection, or

 

(4) if the person has charge or custody of an animal, as owner or otherwise.

(i) inflict unnecessary suffering or pain on the animal; or

(ii) unnecessarily fail to provide the animal with nutritious food in sufficient quantity, necessary veterinary care, proper drink, air, space, shelter, or protection from the weather.

(b) Penalty -

(1) A person who violates this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 90 days or a fine not exceeding $1,000 or both

 

(2) As a condition of sentencing, the court may order a defendant convicted of violating this section to participate in and pay for psychological counseling

 

[An. Code 1957, art. 27, § 59(b)(1)(i)-(iv), (2); 2002, ch. 26, § 2.]

§ 10-606. Aggravated cruelty to animals - In general.
(a) Prohibited. - A person may not.

(1) intentionally mutilate, torture, cruelly beat, or cruelly kill an animal;

 

(2) cause, procure, or authorize an act prohibited under item (1) of this subsection; or

 

(3) except in the case of self-defense, intentionally inflict bodily harm, permanent disability, or death on an animal owned or used by a law enforcement unit.

(b) Penalty. -

(1) A person who violates this section is guilty of the felony of aggravated cruelty to animals and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 3 years or a fine not exceeding $5,000 or both.

 

(2) As a condition of sentencing, the court may order a defendant convicted of violating this section to participate in and pay for psychological counseling.

 

[An. Code 1957, art. 27, § 59(c)(1)(i), (ii), (v), (2); 2002, ch. 26, § 2.]

SS: 10-609. Arrest by Humane Society Officer.

(a) In general. - Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, if an Officer of a Humane Society sees a person committing a misdemeanor that involves cruelty to an animal, the officer shall arrest and bring before the District Court the person committing the misdemeanor.

 

(b) Local enforcement - Baltimore County. - In Baltimore County, the Baltimore County Department of Health, Division of Animal Control shall enforce this section.

 

[Annotated Code 1957, art 27, SS 63.2002 ch 26.SS 2]

EVERY COUNTY HAS GOT AN ANIMAL CONTROL or ANIMAL MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT.

Click here for the various counties in Maryland. Within each county you can find your contact.

If you decide that the situation is a felony, you must immediately call the police to the scene. Or, you can go to the Police Precinct and ask to make a report to an officer. Take names, phone numbers, addresses of anyone witnessing the event. Take notes of where, date and time it occurred. If possible grab a camera and get pictures. Be sure to get a copy of the report you make to the officer, the officer's name and badge number.

After the report is made, then you take a copy of it to the Commissioner and fill out another report and wait to meet with the Commissioner. The Commissioner will decide whether to proceed with an arrest and/or summons. When the case goes to trial it will be criminal and it will be The State of Maryland vs . YOU will be summons to appear as a witness for the State of Maryland Prosecutor. You will be interviewed by the States Attorney or District Attorney in preparing the evidence and your testimony at trial. A failure to appear from you, and then a bench warrant may be issued by the judge for your arrest. Once you start this ball rolling, YOU MUST SEE IT THROUGH TO THE END. Trials like this can take up to a year before they ever get before a judge.

I am telling you all of this because filing charges is serious, and will require you to be committed to seeing justice done.

YOU HAVE LOOKED AT THE SITUATION AND BOUNCED IT OFF THE STATUTE AND IT DOESN'T FIT, NOW WHAT?

If it is a private residence house or apartment; Write down the address, details of what is wrong, grab a camera and take pictures. Do you have any witnesses; get name, phone numbers and addresses. Call Animal Control and ask if they can send an officer. If not immediately go to Animal Control and make a report. If the animals are imminent danger - call 911.

If the situation is a petstore, ask yourself the following; Do you visit this store often or occasionally? Have you ever seen this situation before, or is this just a "bad day" for the store. If it is a constant situation of bad conditions for the animals, then make a report to Animal Control and do as stated in the above paragraph. Also, do some research and find out if the OWNER of the store lives in the area and if so how to contact them. If you are dealing with a large corporation, research them, do they have a Mission Statement that they are in violation of? BY ALL MEANS WRITE THE CEO OF THE CORPORATION.

Get names of clerks responsible for the care of these animals, the manager's name. In your notes put down the day and time. Grab a camera and see if you can sneak some pictures.

Regardless of whether the situation is an on-going problem or just a bad day for the store; bring it to the clerks AND the manager's attention what needs to be done. Stay at the store until it is done. If the animals are in dire need, call Animal Control. Quite often I have very politely and quietly gone into the restroom and gotten water, opened a bag of food off a shelf and fed the ferrets, and even cleaned their cage.

The main thing is do not start a fight. You want to help these folks learn how to take care of the ferrets. If they are understaffed, then they need your understanding and cooperation. If they are ignorant to ferret care; they need you as an educator - bring back literature to help them learn.

Don't fuel a volatile situation where the ferrets could be removed and never heard from again.

If the management finds your protest of a problem to be not worth their time, then file with Animal Control. You can ask for intervention from the SPCA. DO NOT CALL PETA - they do not believe that animals should be kept as pets. period. Call the local newspapers, TV stations, etc. Eventually, the store will find that cooperating with you in caring for the ferrets is a lot less of a hassle than the bad press.

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