A pair of lawmakers is hoping to make animal cruelty a federal crime. The PACT Act, which stands for Preventing Animal Cruelty and Torture, was introduced by Florida Reps. Ted Deutch (D) and Vern Buchanan (R).
"This is commonsense, bipartisan legislation to bring some compassion to our animal laws," Rep. Deutch said. "We've acted in the past to stop the horrific trend of animal abuse videos; now it's time to make the underlying acts of cruelty a crime as well."
Under current federal law, dogfighting is already a crime but the PACT Act would expand the scope of federal prosecutors, allowing them to go after those who film their abuse or commit the acts across state lines.
Anyone who is convicted under the new law would be subject to at least seven years behind bars and they'll be hit with hefty fines.
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