The Origins of Alabama’s Cruelty Laws
Alabama’s early animal-related statutes, dating from approximately the mid-1800s, viewed animals exclusively as property of monetary value. Though many of these early laws penalize the mistreatment of animals, they do so from the perspective of loss of property (monetary damages), not ethical consideration.
Thus, the “animals” of original animal laws were livestock, e.g., animals valued for their market price, production value, or as farm labor. Under Alabama Code § 3-1-10 through 11.1, for example, harming another person’s animal is comparable to damaging another person’s “article or commodity of value” (e.g., farm equipment, cotton, corn, or peanuts). The law allows for a fine and/or imprisonment for the harm or killing of an animal, but only if it is another person’s animal; assigns restitution according to only monetary damage; and mitigates or justifies acts committed as retribution for prior damage to the defendant’s property.
Cruelty laws went beyond such concepts to offer protection to animals regardless of ownership, regardless of monetary value.
Massachusetts Bay colonists enacted the earliest Western animal protection provisions in 1961, according to “The Elephant in the Room: Animal Welfare in the United States” by Hein Online researchers. The provisions were set forth in the colony’s Body of Liberties.
The Body of Liberties is thought to be a precursor to Massachusetts laws and to the United States Bill of Rights. However, according to the State Library of Massachusetts, it is unclear whether the Body of Liberties was ever formally adopted or approved. Perhaps it is for that reason that many or most sources do not mention it in the history of animal protection legislation in the United States.
Instead, most trace the path to anti-cruelty legislation in England and the United States to the late-1700s pleas of British writers for consideration toward animals. While Reverend Humphrey Primatt suggested that the golden rule should apply to all beings, barrister-philosopher Jeremy Bentham offered a now-famous moral test: “The question is not, Can they reason? nor, Can they talk? but Can they suffer.”
England’s first cruelty law was enacted in 1822. It is considered the first known piece of animal welfare legislation in the world. Alabama followed in 1883. These laws focused on the protection of livestock, as is made clear by the name of England's statute, “An Act to Prevent the Cruel and Improper Treatment of Cattle.” Likewise, Alabama’s first cruelty statute, enacted in 1883, described acts of abuse toward livestock: mutilation, overriding, overdriving, overloading.
Cruelty Becomes Criminal in Alabama
1883 — In 1883 the Alabama legislature enacted Act No. 116 (SB123), the state’s first cruelty law, according to History of Alabama by Thomas McAdory Owen (p. 438). While the law applied to “any domestic animal,” the list of prohibited acts demonstrates that livestock were the primary “animals” considered. Violation was a misdemeanor with a fine of $10 to $100. Arrests could be carried out by any person (officer or civilian) who would then be compensated $2 upon conviction; any officer “failing or neglecting to arrest such offender shall be liable to a fine of not less than ten dollars for each and every offense.”
1977 — The modern cruelty statute originated in 1977 as § 13A-11-14 Cruelty to Animals. The statute criminalized intentional or reckless “cruel mistreatment” of any animal, “cruel neglect” of one’s own animal, or killing or injuring another person’s animal “without good cause.” Violation was a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to six months of imprisonment and a fine of up to $3,000. The statute did not (and still does not) define “animal.”
2010 — Cruelty to Animals remained unchanged until it was amended in 2010 via Act 2010-550 (HB561) to add more stringent penalties for subsequent offenses.
2013 — Act 2013-369 (HB27), sponsored by Rep. Joe Faust, adjusted the statute to apply only to acts committed recklessly or with criminal negligence. The original misdemeanor offense was upgraded from Class B to Class A, with maximum imprisonment for the first and subsequent offenses increased to one year. The maximum fine was maintained at the Class B level of $3,000 rather than the Class A fine of up to $6,000. This remains the current version of § 13A-11-14.
The Original Cruelty Statute Gains a Felony Charge
2013 — The same Act 2013-369 which adjusted § 13A-11-14 also created § 13A-11-14.1 Aggravated Cruelty to Animals, a Class C felony. The Act moved the mens rea of intentionality from the misdemeanor to this new felony offense. There have been no amendments to Aggravated Cruelty to Animals.
A Law Specific to Companion Animals, and the First Felony Cruelty Statute
2000 — §§ 13A-11-240–246 Cruelty to Dog or Cat, sponsored by Reps. Blaine Galliher and Mike Hill, was enacted in 2000 via Act 2000-615 (HB182), called the Pet Protection Act. The Act was referred to as Gucci’s law after a chow-husky mix dog who, as a 10-week-old puppy, was “hung by the neck, tortured and set on fire by a group of youths in 1994,” as reported in the Los Angeles Times. College professor Doug James rushed to help the dog, who lived 16 years in James’ care. The documentary film A Dog Named Gucci chronicles Gucci’s story, including James’ six years of collaboration with local legislators to pass Gucci’s law. James died in 2021.
Gucci’s law has much in common with Cruelty to Animals, and a crucial difference: only the companion animal law establishes a procedure for custody of seized animals. There have been no amendments to Cruelty to Dog or Cat.