LEE COUNTY, Fla. — A registry of convicted animal abusers is being created in Lee County.
During a meeting Tuesday morning, Lee County Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the creation of the registry through the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.
The registry will work similarly to the sex offender registry. People who are convicted of animal abuse crimes will be added to the registry, alerting others not to allow them to adopt or buy animals.
“We end up taking in a lot of animals that are abused, neglected. It’s very sad,” said Executive Director of the Cape Coral Animal Sheler Liz McCauley. “We can do background checks. We stalk people on Facebook. We have them do an application. We ask them a lot of questions. But it’s not foolproof.”
There’s now a new tool to help make sure the 110 cats and dogs at the shelter find not only a good home, but an abuse-free home.
The system also creates new rules for selling or giving away pets.
If you’re the one giving the animal away, you will now be responsible for making sure the person receiving the pet isn’t on the animal abuse registry.
Not checking the list could land you in the dog house. First-time offenders will get a warning. Second-time offenders will be fined. Third-time offenders could face prosecution for giving a pet to someone convicted of animal abuse crimes and on the county registry.
The registry isn’t a new idea. According to filings within the Lee County Commission, several other counties have an animal abuse registry. Those counties in Florida include Miami-Dade, Hillsborough, Marion, Volusia, Pasco and more.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office will operate the registry at no additional cost to taxpayers.