View our position here.

UPDATE (May 3, 2016): Gov. Snyder has signed the bill, becoming 2016 PA 94, almost one year after it was heard in the House Criminal Justice Committee. You can review the bill that was signed into law here

 

About the Bill:

Attorneys for Animals testimony at the House Criminal Justice Committee, May 19, 2015 included these excerpts:

DV woman dogHB 4478 acknowledges the well-established Link or connection between domestic violence and animal abuse. Domestic violence involves a range of controlling behaviors. A growing body of research indicates that a significant number of individuals who abuse their partners also abuse their pets as part of this repertoire of controlling behaviors. (Simmons and Lehmann 2007).

The bill clarifies the victim’s right, and the judge’s authority, to include animals in protective orders. This is important due to:

  • The sheer numbers

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  • Their importance to victims of domestic violence: fear for household animals’ welfare is a significant barrier preventing or delaying abuse victims escaping the situation. Twelve independent surveys have reported between 18% and 48% of battered women have delayed their decision to leave, or have returned to the batterer out of fear for their pets or livestock (Ascione 2007)
  • Upwards of 71% of victims in domestic violence shelters report that their abuser harmed, killed or threatened family pets (Ascione, Weber & Wood 1997)1 in 4 Wash HS

The past 10 years has seen a growing recognition that legislative bodies have a significant role to play in addressing the Link.  This legislation places Michigan on par with 28 other states [UPDATE: NOW 30] – nearly 60% of all states – that have enacted similar legislation since Maine became the first in 2006. (Animal Legal and Historical Center https://www.animallaw.info/article/domestic-violence-and-pets-list-states-include-pets-protection-orders; National Link Coalition http://nationallinkcoalition.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/PPO-Summary-by-State-3-2015.pdf)

These laws can be effective: in Minnesota, which passed a law in 2010, the number of animals in protection orders increased from 165 that first year, to 1067 in 2013. (National LINK Coalition’s LINK-Letter, Vol. 7. No. 1, January 2014, p. 5, Pet Protective Order Statistics Reported in Minnesota)

Government and Private Partnership address an important societal concern. This issue is being addressed by nonprofit organizations as well as by legislatures. Of the many organizations which devote resources to assisting people escape violent situations with their animals. I will mention two, because members of the groups I’m speaking on behalf of today, are involved in both:

  • Sheltering Animals & Families Together™ (SAF-T) which guides domestic violence shelters on how to house families together with their pets and which has published the SAF-T Start-Up Manualsetting forth three housing styles and answering questions about how to safely house pets on-site at a domestic violence shelter. (http://alliephillips.com/saf-tprogram/)
  • Red Rover, a 501(c)(3) organization provides a variety of resources, including monetary grants for individual victims of domestic violence (Safe Escape) and for shelters (Safe Housing); and a database, by zip code connecting victims to the nearest safe place for their animals.(http://www.redrover.org/redrover-relief-domestic-violence-resources)