State Rep. John Espinoza (D-Croswell) receives the 2008 Brandi Award on Thursday, October 23, from Rose Stern, Chair of the Animal Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan.
LANSING – State Representative John Espinoza (D-Croswell) today received the 2008 Brandi Award from the State Bar of Michigan, an honor given to the most humane legislator each year. The award recognizes Espinoza's persistence in getting a new law passed to increase penalties for people convicted of animal cruelty and give prosecutors the tools they need to hold the worst offenders accountable.
"Representative Espinoza took the initiative to amend the law so that repeat offenders and those who commit extreme acts of animal neglect or cruelty get the punishment they deserve," said Rose Stern, Chair of the Animal Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan. "He worked diligently to respond to a horrific local situation by giving prosecutors the tools they need and sending the message that our state takes animal cruelty seriously. His work will have a lasting impact on Michigan's ability to effectively fight animal cruelty and neglect."
Espinoza acted in response to a case involving 70 dead or starving animals found on a Buel Township farm. Prosecutors could not charge the owners with felonies because they could not prove the "willful" and "malicious" intent toward an animal that the law required. Other violations were misdemeanors, for which the maximum punishment was 93 days in jail.
The new law sponsored by Espinoza allows prosecutors and judges to make decisions based on the defendant's previous animal cruelty or neglect convictions and the number of animals harmed. A perpetrator with a prior offense – or one who is convicted in an abuse or neglect case involving four to nine animals – can be sent to prison for up to two years. A perpetrator with two or more prior convictions – or one convicted of abusing or neglecting 10 or more animals – can be imprisoned for up to four years.
"I am honored to receive this award and to help Michigan taking a big step forward in our responsibility to stop animal abuse and neglect," Espinoza said. "Now we can hold offenders accountable and hopefully ensure that extreme crimes like this do not happen again."