A bill which would put teeth into animal cruelty laws got another setback Wednesday as the Senate Committee on Operations held it pending further study. The measure was heard in St. Croix earlier this month and held over pending the recommendations of the Attorney General's Office.
The action came as a disappointment to the people called to testify on the measure, including St. Thomas Humane Society manager Hubert Brumant, Safety Zone executive director Iris Kern, Agriculture Commissioner Henry Schuster and animal activist Rita Roth.
At issue were recommendations from the office of Attorney General Iver Stridiron to be integrated into the bill. Committee chair Gregory Bennerson said they were submitted too late for the senators to study.
The bill, proposed by Sen. Adlah "Foncie" Donastorg, would make animal cruelty a felony instead of a misdemeanor, increase fines for cruelty, and establish a $100,000 Animal Abuse Fund.
Roth said she had petitions with 3,000 signatures supporting the bill. She said, "That is a significant number of people in our community." She also said Humane Society of the U.S. officials have offered to travel to the territory at their own expense to "conduct seminar-/workshops with the police, Territorial Court, or any agency dealing with human services, to sensitize the community about issues of animal and child abuse and violence, and get people together to address these issues."
Bennerson apologized for the delay in taking testimony, promising those present that the bill would be "heard soon."
