Animal Lovers Advocate for Tougher Cruelty Investigations

Baltimore officials insist the city is making progress fighting animal cruelty, but advocates argue more can still be done.

Police Commissioner Anthony Batts and Health Commissioner Dr. Oxiris Barbot both addressed the Baltimore City Council’s Health Committee hearing Wednesday on the progress made fighting animal cruelty.

"This is a time for Baltimore to move forward in combating animal abuse, and the police department stands firm to support that," Batts told the committee. 

The hearing was called to look into the city’s progress combating animal abuse after the Mayor’s Anti-Animal Abuse Advisory Commission issued a report critical of the city’s efforts, and some members resigned in protest this spring.  The commission was formed in 2009 after a pit bull named Phoenix was set on fire in the city. 

Both Barbot and Batts said their respective departments are making strides toward effectively combating animal abuse, which can be an indicator of more serious criminal behavior. 

One of the steps the city has made in combating animal cruelty is assigning the city police's K-9 officers to investigate any possible felony cases of animal abuse, such as dog fighting or purposely killing an animal.   

In cases of misdemeanor animal abuse, such as attending a dog fight or depriving an animal of food and shelter, animal control officers would work with the Baltimore State’s Attorney’s office to prepare charging documents.  

But animal advocates argued that still is not enough, and that animal control, which is currently managed by the Health Department, needs to be placed under the control of a law enforcement agency so more resources may be dedicated to investigating claims of animal cruelty.

Gale Rasin, a retired Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge who resigned from the Mayor’s Anti-Animal Abuse Advisory Commission, argued animal abuse cases require trained investigators, and compared investigating animal cruelty to investigating child abuse cases involving an infant.

"Even the K-9 unit can’t interview the victim. So it requires skilled investigators, who are trained to collect evidence, including forensic evidence, and do a good investigation," Rasin said.

Councilman Robert Curran, chairman of the committee, said he would reconvene another hearing in a few moths to review how the city is progressing toward improving how it deals with animal cruelty cases.

"Obviously it’s not a perfect world. But we’re moving forward," Curran said.