Georgia Finally Getting Tougher on Dog Fighting

It's not news that Georgia has had very lax laws when it comes to animal cruelty and dog fighting, but it looks as if the state is finally ready to catch up to the rest of the country. There's no doubt in my mind that the Michael Vick case finally lit a fire under their butts to do something proactive and prevent a similiar media blackeye for allowing these types of activities to continue.

The House voted 165-6 to allow prosecutors to charge spectators of dog fights with a misdemeanor penalty which carries up to a year in jail and a maximum $5,000 fine.

The bill also allows prosecutors to charge people who host dog fights or train their canines for dogfighting with a felony.

The Senate passed a similar bill last year, but it failed to reach a vote.

Now the catch is will law enforcement officials actually enforce the new regulations? I know from personal experience that it is not easy to get someone to do anything about a situation without threatening going to the media. Hopefully, officials are learning that people care what happens to animals, and when nothing is done to help those in need. If nothing else, officials can at least be afraid of the bad publicity. Just ask Michael Vick.