| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to police dogs, fire dogs, SAR dogs, and |
| 3 | police horses; amending s. 843.19, F.S.; prohibiting |
| 4 | intentionally and knowingly causing great bodily harm to |
| 5 | or using a deadly weapon upon a police dog, fire dog, SAR |
| 6 | dog, or police horse; prohibiting actually and |
| 7 | intentionally maliciously touching, striking, or causing |
| 8 | bodily harm to a police dog, fire dog, SAR dog, or police |
| 9 | horse; prohibiting maliciously harassing, teasing, |
| 10 | interfering with, or attempting to interfere with a police |
| 11 | dog, fire dog, SAR dog, or police horse while the animal |
| 12 | is in the performance of its duties; providing penalties; |
| 13 | providing for restitution from violators; providing |
| 14 | application; providing an effective date. |
| 15 |
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| 16 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 17 |
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| 18 | Section 1. Subsection (2) of section 843.19, Florida |
| 19 | Statutes, is amended, and subsections (3), (4), and (5) are |
| 20 | added to said section, to read: |
| 21 | 843.19 Offenses against Injuring or killing police dogs |
| 22 | dog, fire dogs dog, SAR dogs dog, or police horses horse |
| 23 | prohibited; penalty.-- |
| 24 | (2) Any person who intentionally and knowingly causes and |
| 25 | willfully and without lawful cause or justification inflicts |
| 26 | great bodily harm, permanent disability, or death to, or uses a |
| 27 | deadly weapon upon, a police dog, fire dog, SAR dog, or police |
| 28 | horse commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as |
| 29 | provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. |
| 30 | (3) Any person who actually and intentionally maliciously |
| 31 | touches, strikes, or causes bodily harm to a police dog, fire |
| 32 | dog, SAR dog, or police horse commits a misdemeanor of the first |
| 33 | degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. |
| 34 | (4) Any person who intentionally or knowingly maliciously |
| 35 | harasses, teases, interferes with, or attempts to interfere with |
| 36 | a police dog, fire dog, SAR dog, or police horse while the |
| 37 | animal is in the performance of its duties commits a misdemeanor |
| 38 | of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. |
| 39 | 775.083. |
| 40 | (5) A person convicted of an offense under this section |
| 41 | shall make restitution for injuries caused to the police dog, |
| 42 | fire dog, SAR dog, or police horse and shall pay the replacement |
| 43 | cost of the animal if, as a result of the offense, the animal |
| 44 | can no longer perform its duties. |
| 45 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2005, and |
| 46 | shall apply to offenses occurring on or after that date. |