POUGHKEEPSIE — The Dutchess County Legislature has unanimously approved the formation of the Animal Welfare and Community Stewardship Committee (AWCS), aiming to address a gap in public safety and to better protect both animals and people in the county.
Legislator Anna Shah, D-Town of Poughkeepsie, co-authored the resolution with Legislator Eric Alexander, D-Amenia. Shah said the two met with “law enforcement, animal welfare organizations, shelters, rescues, and community stakeholders” to discuss the committee’s formation and the needs of the community.
Shah said, “By bringing together the expertise of animal welfare professionals, veterinarians, environmental specialists, municipal officials, law enforcement, and other relevant stakeholders, the AWCS will advise the legislature on how the county can better protect animals from abuse and neglect and support the organizations and law enforcement bodies that do this important work.” Shah further explained the need for action, saying, “We recognized that rising costs, housing instability, mental health challenges, substance abuse disorders, and economic hardship all affect the well-being of animals and the people who care for them. We also recognized the well-documented connection between animal cruelty and interpersonal violence. Law enforcement and prosecutors increasingly recognize that animal abuse frequently occurs alongside domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, hoarding behavior, and other forms of violence.”
The AWCS will assess current animal control and humane law enforcement resources, and work on solutions for coordinating responses and care options for abused or neglected animals. The committee will also focus on creating cost-effective, centralized county resources and standard operating procedures, according to Shah and Alexander.
“This committee will act quickly to address problems that have been allowed to fester and worsen over time. From better coordination of the resources we have today, to the development of a longer-term plan for countywide solutions, we will act with the urgency required to alleviate the suffering of the abused and neglected animals in our county,” Alexander said.
Dutchess County Sheriff Kirk Imperati has been working to create a . Humane Law Enforcement officers are certified peace officers under state law. They wear police-style uniforms and carry firearms, but receive only 35 hours of training, compared to several months required for police officers. In Dutchess County, SPCA HLE officers investigate complaints with help from the sheriff’s office. Undersheriff Jason Mark said the process can be streamlined by having specially trained members of the sheriff’s office handle humane complaints from start to finish.
Imperati has endorsed the creation of the new committee, saying, “The Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office has had dedicated professionals devoted to animal rights for many years. Having even more partners in this extremely important work will only strengthen our resolve and will go a long way toward eradicating these crimes and sending a strong message to those who commit them.”
Senior Assistant District Attorney Nicholas La Stella will lead the office’s recently launched Animal Cruelty unit. La Stella, deputy unit chief of the DA’s Special Victims Unit, was chosen because of the “significant overlap between animal cruelty and special victims cases. The number of victims of domestic violence who report animal cruelty is between 70-80 percent; people who abuse people they perceive as weaker often abuse animals as well.”