news-record.com

It's a start.
People that abuse, and attack, animals to this degree should serve no less than half the time that would be served for doing the same thing to a human.
Now let's push for stronger punishment for people that allow their animals to attack and injure or kill other animals and people.

I am an animal lover but people who commit murder dont even get the right punishment. Laws are no good if we do not have people enforcing the punishment. Something needs to be done in our judical system. NC doesnt hold to their punishments, it will be a slap on the hand as everything else is in this state.

Now that we have this one out of the way, the legislature needs to strengthen the penalties for predatory sex offenders: first conviction of rape of anyone of any age, life without parole. Do not allow rape to be plea bargained to "indecent liberties" as was the case recently in New Hanover Co. Unless the law is strengthened, it is only a matter of time before NC has its own Chelsea King, Amber Dubois story. NC needs to pass legislation being considered in CA. Chelsea's Law would "allow life sentences for a first offense of forcible sex crimes involving a child under 18, up from the current 15-year to 25-year sentence. The life term would be reserved for cases with aggravating factors that include kidnapping, using a weapon, torture, binding or drugging a victim or a previous sex crime conviction." That legislation, too, should pass 113-0. As much as I love animals and hate to see them abused, I think our women and children deserve protection from abuse first.

Our legislators' time would have been better spent strengthening North Carolina's dog bite laws in which there are so many loopholes that it is almost impossible to hold an owner accountable for the actions of his/her dog. It is a shame and disgrace that our elected representatives aren't as concerned about all the people (mostly children) attacked by dogs in this state as they are about the dogs themselves.

soatbs, methinks thou dost protest too much. I have lobbied for several years and will continue to lobby for tougher sentencing for sex offenders. Unfortunately, I am just one voice and have to work to support my family, so I do not have the time to go to Raleigh and speak personally to every legislator. Susie was abused several months ago and the law passes 113-0. Where are these many people you speak of who worked very hard to help animals who have no voice and no vote when a six-year-old child, who has no voice and no vote, is raped? Where are they when an 83-year-old woman is brutally raped and beaten in her own home? My problem is not with Susie's law; it is with our legislators who will pass Susie's law while I have two sex offenders living within a mile of my house and I have two small children. Just as I have only so much time to lobby for tighter sentencing, our legislators have only so much time to debate issues. The fact they chose to debate Susie's Law, while every day women and children are molested in this state tells me they would rather handle the no-brainers than substantive issues. I have pets, both dogs and cats, and I have kids; I will always lobby for my kids first. It is not that I disagree with the law, I disagree with the priorities.