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A. A person commits animal cruelty if the person does any of the following:

1. Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly subjects any animal under the person’s custody or control to cruel neglect or abandonment.

2. Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly fails to provide medical care and treatment necessary to prevent unreasonable suffering to any animal under the person’s custody or control.

3. Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly inflicts unnecessary physical injury to any animal.

4. Recklessly subjects any animal to cruel mistreatment.

5. Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly kills or attempts to kill any animal under the custody or control of another person without either legal privilege or consent of the owner.

6. Recklessly interferes with, strikes, kills or harms a working or service animal without either legal privilege or consent of the owner.

7. Strikes an animal with a vehicle resulting in injury to the animal, and leaves the scene without rendering aid and assistance in the care of such animal if such action can be taken with reasonable safety. For the purposes of this subsection, animal means any animal of a species that is susceptible to rabies, except man.

8. Intentionally or knowingly poisons or attempts to poison any animal. Attempt to poison includes the act of placing food, water, or lure of another sort which contains poison or contains health threatening foreign objects, such as glass or metal, in a location where any animal may be attracted to it. For the purposes of this subsection, animal means any animal of a species that is susceptible to rabies, except man.

9. Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly makes use of a baited trap for the purpose of trapping an animal, or makes use of any mechanical device to capture an animal in such a manner so as to cause its death or injury, or causing a pet to be kept for a period in excess of 24 hours from its owner without making an attempt to return the pet to its owner, to a proper governmental authority, or to a recognized humane organization for purposes of return to its owner. Nothing contained in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit governmental agencies or recognized animal humane groups or any entity licensed to perform such function from engaging in trapping and capturing of animals for the welfare of those animals.

B. It is a defense to subsection A of this section if:

1. Any person exposes poison to be taken by a dog which has killed or wounded livestock or poison to be taken by predatory animals on premises owned, leased or controlled by the person for the purpose of protecting the person or the person’s livestock or poultry, and the treated property is kept posted by the person who authorized or performed the treatment until the poison has been removed, and the poison is removed by the person exposing the poison after the threat to the person, or the person’s livestock or poultry, has ceased to exist. The posting required shall provide adequate warning to persons who enter the property by the point or points of normal entry. The warning notice which is posted shall be readable at a distance of 50 feet, shall contain a poison statement and symbol and shall state the word "danger" or "warning."

2. Any person uses poisons, baited traps or a mechanical device in and immediately around buildings owned, leased or controlled by the person for the purpose of controlling rodents as otherwise allowed by the laws of the State.

C. It is not a defense to subsection A of this section if:

1. The animal was trespassing on property owned or controlled by the person alleged to have violated this section.

2. The animal was not restrained in compliance with any leash law, including Section 8-14.

3. The person alleged to have violated this section did not know that the animal was under the custody or control of another person.

D. This section does not prohibit or restrict:

1. The taking of wildlife or other activities permitted by or pursuant to Title 17, Arizona Revised Statutes.

2. Activities permitted by or pursuant to Title 3, Arizona Revised Statutes.

3. Activities regulated by the Arizona Game and Fish Department or the Arizona Department of Agriculture.

E. A person who violates subsection A of this section is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

F. In addition to any other penalties allowed by law, if a person convicted of violating subsection (A)(1), (A)(2), (A)(3) or (A)(4) of this section owns, possesses, keeps, harbors or maintains ten or more animals, the Court shall require the person to undergo a Court-approved psychological evaluation prior to sentencing.

G. If a person convicted under this section is placed on probation, the Court may:

1. Order the person to complete counseling at the person’s expense.

2. Order the person to submit to reasonable periodic property inspections by law enforcement.

3. Prohibit the person from owning, possessing, keeping, harboring or maintaining any animals.

H. If a person is convicted of a violation of subsection A of this section, the Court shall require the convicted person to make restitution to the owner of the animal in the full amount of the owner’s economic loss, unless the convicted person and the owner are the same. The full amount of economic loss shall include, but not be limited to, the costs of veterinary care, boarding, and necropsy; value of the animal; costs of a replacement animal; costs of training a replacement animal; and, in the case of a working or service animal, any additional costs incurred to replace the services of the working or service animal while the animal remains unavailable to its owner.

I. Upon conviction of any person under subsection (A)(1), (A)(2), (A)(3) or (A)(4) of this section for cruelty to an animal that is under the person’s custody or control, the Court shall order the animal that was subjected to animal cruelty forfeited to the City and disposed of as authorized in this chapter. For purposes of forfeiture, a conviction may result from a verdict or plea including a no contest plea. All right, title and interest to the animal is deemed to have vested in the City on the commission of the act or omission under this section giving rise to the forfeiture. The Court also shall order the convicted person to make restitution to the City or to any person, agency, or volunteer who has contracted with the City to care for an animal that is seized and impounded pursuant to this or other provisions of this section for the cost of care for the animal incurred from the time of seizure or impoundment to the time of conviction.

J. No owner’s interest in an animal may be forfeited under this section if the owner establishes all of the following:

1. The owner acquired the interest before or during the conduct giving rise to forfeiture.

2. The owner did not empower any person whose act or omission gives rise to forfeiture with legal or equitable power to convey the interest, as to a bona fide purchaser for value, and the owner was not married to any such person or if married to such person, held the property as separate property.

3. The owner did not know and could not reasonably have known of the act or omission or that it was likely to occur.

Further, no owner’s interest in an animal may be forfeited under this section if the owner establishes all of the following:

4. The owner acquired the interest after the conduct giving rise to forfeiture.

5. The owner is a bona fide purchaser for value not knowingly taking part in an illegal transaction.

6. The owner was at the time of purchase and at all times after the purchase and before the filing of a criminal proceeding under this section relating to the animal, reasonably without notice of the act or omission giving rise to forfeiture and reasonably without cause to believe that the animal was subject to forfeiture.

K. In this section, unless the context otherwise requires:

"Adequate shelter" means any natural or artificial cover accessible to an animal throughout the year which is structurally sound, maintained in good repair to protect the animal from injury, and of sufficient size to permit the animal to enter, stand, turn around and lie down in a natural manner. Adequate shelter must protect the animal from extreme weather conditions, have adequate ventilation and drainage, and be maintained in a manner which minimizes the risk of disease, infestations, or parasites.

"Animal" means a mammal, bird, reptile or amphibian, but excludes livestock as defined by this chapter and rodents, which may be controlled as otherwise allowed by the law of the State of Arizona. The exclusion of rodents from the definition of animal shall not apply to rodents classified as fur-bearing animals as defined in Section 17-101, Arizona Revised Statutes, or to any particular rodent known by the person alleged to have violated this section to be kept as a pet or any rodent clearly marked and denominated as being a pet, such as rodents wearing collars or harnesses.

"Cost of care" means any expense related to the care and treatment of a seized or forfeited animal, including but not limited to housing, feeding, and veterinary care.

"Cruel mistreatment" means to torture or otherwise inflict unnecessary serious physical injury upon an animal, or to kill an animal in a manner that causes unreasonable suffering to the animal.

"Cruel neglect" means to fail to provide an animal with necessary food that is appropriate for the species and fit for consumption, water that is suitable for drinking, and adequate shelter.

"Handler" means a law enforcement officer or any other person who has successfully completed a course of training prescribed by the person’s agency or the service animal owner and who used a specially trained animal under the direction of the person’s agency or the service animal owner.

"Owner" means a person who has an interest in an animal, whether legal or equitable. A person who holds an animal for the benefit of or as an agent for another is not an owner. An owner with power to convey an animal binds other owners, and a spouse binds his or her spouse, by his or her act or omission.

"Service animal" means an animal that has completed a formal training program, that assists its owner in one or more daily living tasks that are associated with a productive lifestyle and that is trained to not pose a danger to the health and safety of the general public.

"Working animal" means a horse or dog that is used by a law enforcement agency, that is specially trained for law enforcement work and that is under the control of a handler. (Ord. No. G-4388, § 3, 2001; Ord. No. G-5445, § 1, 2009; Ord. No. G-5810, 2013; Ord. No. G-7131, § 1, 2023)