Toulouse has created the very first judicial center dedicated to animal abuse
The Toulouse Court of Appeal authorized the creation of a judicial center dedicated to animal abuse, a first in France, in order to strengthen the monitoring of procedures and to intervene quickly if there is an emergency.
The person behind this initiative to fight against animal abuse is Franck Rastoul, Attorney General of the Toulouse Court of Appeal.
This Environment and animal abuse center was created on September 1, 2022 following the cases of animal violence which were canceled in Haute-Garonne, Tarn, Ariège and Tarn-et-Garonne.
The objective of this judicial center is to improve the judicial response to cases of animal cruelty.
Thus, in addition to protecting animals, this judicial center aims to prevent animal abuse cases from being dismissed, as often happens, according to the 30 Million Friends Foundation.
“Any attack on animals must receive a systematic criminal response. »
All cases will be taken into account, according to Franck Rastoul, “whether they are the most serious cases or perhaps less sordid cases, but which nevertheless constitute offenses that it is important to continue. »
When the facts prove that the owners are guilty of mistreatment, their animal will be confiscated, and they could be prohibited from detention. Jurisdictions will therefore have to take care of quickly placing the animals so that they find themselves in a new loving home.
“It is important that any attack on animals receives a systematic criminal response, at least at the level of prosecution, in order to break the process of abuse”, explains Franck Rastoul to the 30 Million Friends Foundation.
The judicial center of Toulouse also provides training actions for all prosecutors within the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal. The aim is to raise awareness and train magistrates in issues related to animal abuse.
As a reminder, animal abuse has increased by 30% according to a study by the Ministry of the Interior. In France, in 2021, 12,000 offenses against domestic animals, tamed or held in captivity, were recorded by the police and the gendarmerie, compared to 9,200 in 2016.
The creation of this judicial center is therefore a good step forward for animals.