Mistreatment of Animals Attorney

Mistreatment of Animal Defense Attorney

​In North Dakota, there are three broad criminal offenses that deal with mistreatment of animals: animal neglect, animal abuse, and animal cruelty.  

• Animal Neglect:  "Any person that willfully engages in animal neglect is guilty of a class A misdemeanor."  N.D.C.C. § 36-21.2-01(1)  
• Animal Abuse:  "Any act or omission that results in physical injury to an animal or that causes the death of an animal, but does not include any act that falls within the definition of animal cruelty, as set forth in section 36-21.2-03."  N.D.C.C. § 36-21.2-02(2)  For a first offense it is a class A misdemeanor.   
• Animal Cruelly:  When a person intentionally breaks a bone, tortures, or mutilates the animal, that constitutes the crime of animal cruelty. It is a class C felony.

Public outrage and emotions sometimes sway the State in deciding whether to charge such conduct.

You need an aggressive, experience lawyer on your side. In Attorney Edinger's 24 year career, he has defended several mistreatment of animal cases.

Each case is different, but here is an example of Attorney Edinger's experience leading to a favorable outcome.

State v. B.F. (Cass County, North Dakota)

The defendant, a Korean War veteran, was wrongly charged with the crime of mistreating animals. Defendant was accused of mistreating his hunting dogs after a neighbor saw the defendant disciplining his hunting dogs. At the jury trial, Attorney Edinger successfully argued the hunting dogs were well cared for and loved by the defendant. After Attorney Edinger was allowed to show the hunting dogs to the jury, shortly thereafter, the jury found the defendant not guilty of the charge

YOU NEED A FIGHTER.  CALL RICHARD EDINGER NOW