Bestiality and The Law
State laws in the U.S.
Law - Is their a specific law against bestiality in that
state/country.
NONE = No specific law found against bestiality YES = Law found
regarding bestiality.
Statute - Statute Number.
If a law has been found this is the state/country's statute
number it was found under.
Penalty - Penalty classification for violating the law.
This may vary between states/countries.
PT = Prison time
| State |
Law |
Statute |
Penalty |
| Alabama |
YES |
Code of Ala. @13A-6-63 (1994) |
"Sodomy in the 1st degree" criminal offense. |
| Alaska |
NONE |
| Arizona |
NONE |
| Arkansas |
YES |
Ark. Stat. Ann. @13A-6-63 (1994) |
Criminal Offense: "sodomy in 1st degree" |
| California |
YES |
Penal Code Section 286.5 Misdemeanor |
| Colorado |
NONE |
| Connecticut |
NONE |
| Delaware |
YES |
11 Del. C. @777 (1993) |
Class D Criminal felony. |
| Florida |
NONE |
| Georgia |
YES |
O.C.G.A. @16-6-6 (1994) |
1-5 yr. jail sentence. |
| Hawaii |
NONE |
| Idaho |
YES |
Idaho Code @18-6605 |
"length of imprisonment in excess of 5 years is left to
discretion of court." |
| Illinois |
YES |
720 ILCS 5/12-12 (1994) |
Crime. |
| Indiana |
YES |
Burn Ind. Code. Ann. @35-42-4-2 (1994) |
| Iowa |
NONE |
| Kansas |
YES |
K.S.A. @2103506 (1993) |
Aggravated criminal sodomy security level 2, felony |
| Kentucky |
NONE |
| Louisiana |
NONE |
| Maine |
YES |
17-A M.R.S. @ 251 (1994) |
Class C Crime; 3-5 years |
| Maryland |
YES |
Unnatural/Perverted Sexual Acts Article 27, Section 553 |
up to $1,000 fine, Max of 10 years PT |
| Massachusetts |
YES |
Mass. Ann. Laws. ch. 272 @34 (1994) |
Jail sentence of not more than 20 years |
| Michigan |
YES |
MCL @750.185 (1992) |
Jail sentence of not more than 15 years |
| Minnessota |
YES |
Minn. Stat. @609.294, (1993) |
Either fine of not more than $3,000 or sentence of not more
than 1 year. |
| Mississippi |
YES |
Miss. Code. Ann., @97-29-59 |
Sentence of not more than 10 years. |
| Missouri |
NONE |
| Montana |
YES |
Mont. Code. Ann., @45-5-505 (1994) |
10 year sentence and/or $50,000 fine. |
| Nebraska |
NONE |
| Nevada |
NONE |
| New Hampshire |
NONE |
| New Jersey |
NONE |
| New Mexico |
NONE |
| New York |
YES |
NY CLS Penal @130.20 (1994) |
Class A misdemeanor. |
| North Carolina |
YES |
N.C. Gen. Stat. @14-177 (1994) |
Class I felony. 3-10 years |
| North Dakota |
YES |
N.D. Cent. Code @12.1-20-03, 12.1-20-07, 12.1-20-12(1993) |
Various penalties, and can be considered either "gross
sexual imposition," "sexual assault" or
"deviate sexual act" |
| Ohio |
NONE |
| Oklahoma |
YES |
21 Okl. St. @886 (1994) |
"imprisonment not to exceed 10 years" |
| Oregon |
NONE |
| Pennsylvania |
YES |
18 Pa. C. S. @3101, 3123 and 3124 (1994) |
| Rhode Island |
YES |
R.I. Gen. Laws @11-10-1 (1993) |
7-20 years. |
| South Carolina |
YES |
S.C. Code Ann. @16-15-120 (1993) |
5 yrs jail and/or fine of at least $500 |
| South Dakota |
NONE |
| Tennessee |
YES |
Tenn. Code. Ann. @39-13-501 (1994) |
| Texas |
NONE |
| Utah |
YES |
Bestiality 76-9-301.8 |
Class B Misdemeanor |
| Vermont |
NONE |
| Virginia |
YES |
Va. Code. Ann. @18.2-361 (1994) |
Class 6 Felony |
| Washington |
NONE |
| Washington DC |
YES |
DC Code @22-3502 (1994) ("Sexual Psychopath"
chapter) |
Fine not more than $1,000 and/or sentence of not more than
10 yrs |
| West Virginia |
NONE |
| Wisconsin |
YES |
Wis. State. @944.17 (1993) |
None listed |
| Wyoming |
NONE |
Laws in other countries
| Country |
Law |
Statute |
Penalty |
| Canada |
YES |
Criminal Code of Canada Section 153 |
Approx 10 years |
|
| Denmark |
NONE |
|
| Finland |
NONE |
|
| Netherlands |
NONE |
|
| New Zealand |
YES |
Crimes Act of 1964 Section 143 & 144 |
Maximum 7 years PT |
|
| Switzerland |
NONE |
|
| United Kingdom |
YES |
Sexual Offences Act of 1956, Section 12(1) Sexual Offences
Act of 1967, Section 3(1) |
Life imprisonment (typically 30 years) |
Federal laws of the U.S. regarding bestiality
1. Introduction
There is no federal law which prohibits sex between
humans and animals. There are a few federal laws, however, which
list bestiality, along with many other forms of sex, which are
prohibited when involving children (18 USCS @2256, 3509 (1994) ).
2. The Roth Test
In 1957, the U.S. Supreme Court developed the "Roth
Test" to define "obscenity." The Roth Test requires
that the court ask "whether to the average person, applying
contemporary community standards, the dominant theme of the
material taken as a whole appeals to prurient interest" (Roth
v. United States, 354 US 476, 1). Since the Roth decision, the
Supreme Court has added that such material must be utterly without
redeeming social values.
3. United States Code Chapter 71; Obscenity
| Section |
Content |
| 1460 |
Possession with intent to sell, and sale, of obscene matter
on Federal property |
| 1461 |
Mailing obscene or crime-inciting matter |
| 1462 |
Importation or transportation of obscene matters |
| 1463 |
Mailing indecent matter on wrappers or envelopes |
| 1464 |
Broadcasting obscene language |
| 1465 |
Transportation of obscene matters for sale or distribution |
| 1466 |
Engaging in the business of selling or transferring obscene
matter |
| 1467 |
Criminal forfeiture |
| 1468 |
Distributing obscene material by cable or subscription
television |
| 1469 |
Presumptions |
In Armijo v. U.S., 384 F2d 694, The court ruled that portions of
letters describing in detail "degenerate bestiality" were
not merely obscene but represented hard-core pornography.
The federal code most damaging to zoophiliac freedom is 18 USCS @
1461, which prohibits obscene books as mailable. In the case U.S. v.
Miller 455 F.2d 899, this statute was applied by court to find that
books describing bestiality between women and a dog were "unmailable."
Now remember the Roth Test... So now you know that you can't mail,
import, transport, broadcast, transport, sell, transfer, or distribute
via cable or subscription televison, obscene material.
Criminal forfeiture? Guess what, Code 1467 says that the courts can
take any property that involved the obscenity law being broken. This
could be your VCR, your car, your computer, etcetera. You forfeited
them when you used them to break the law.
Presumptions? Code 1469 means that if there is any hint that the
material was made somewhere else, be it direct evidence or even
circumstantial evidence, then the courts will immediately assume it
was transported and therefore violated Code 1462 as well.
NOTICE:
The law is constantly changes, so this article should not be taken as legal advice.
If you want legal advice, find a lawyer.
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