TULSA — Two Florida lawmakers are pushing a bill to make animal cruelty a federal felony.
Rep. Ted Deutch, whose district represents parts of Palm Beach and Broward Counties, is one of the main sponsors of the Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture Act, or PACT, along with Rep. Vern Buchanan of Sarasota, Florida.
The bill says anyone accused of crushing, burning, drowning, suffocating, impaling or causing any serious bodily injury to an animal could be charged with a federal felony and face up to seven years in prison.
Jamee Suarez, President of the Oklahoma Alliance for Animals said they support the push.
"We see the stuff and and we're like, 'Oh my God' and then you see people walk and then you're like, 'Why? Why are they walking? This is a horrific crime,'" Suarez said.
As of now, all 50 states have laws against animal cruelty. In Oklahoma, animal cruelty is a felony that carries up to five years in prison.
"Making it a felony through federal would help the state bring better or more charges against them if they felt that it was intentional," Suarez said.
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