HB373 Alabama 2012 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Paul DeMarco

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2012

Title

Service dogs, harassing, injuring, or causing death of, crime of established, penalties, restitution of certain expenses

Summary

HB373 would make it a crime to harass, injure, or kill a service dog, with penalties and restitution for victims.

What This Bill Does

It makes it unlawful to harass, injure, or cause the death of a service dog under defined conditions and sets penalties by intent. It defines key terms such as service dog, harass, injure, notice, and the value of the service dog to its user. It requires full restitution for damages and losses suffered by the service dog user, including medical costs, replacement or retraining of the dog, and lost wages. It also allows the service dog user to sue in civil court and lets courts award costs and attorney fees to the prevailing party.

Who It Affects

• Service dog users and their handlers, who would be protected from harassment or harm to their service dogs and could receive restitution for expenses and losses.
• Members of the general public and dog owners, who would face criminal penalties if their actions harass or injure a service dog or fail to restrain their own dog around a service dog.

Key Provisions

• Prohibits harassing, injuring, or causing the death of a service dog; penalties depend on intent: Class C misdemeanor for harassing after notice or reckless disregard, Class B misdemeanor for reckless injury, Class A misdemeanor for intentional injury or death.
• Defines terms: service dog, harass, injure, notice, and 'value' of the service dog to the user (including costs, replacement/training, medical and boarding expenses, lost wages, and other expenses).
• Requires restitution for damages to the service dog user, including medical costs, replacement/training costs, lost wages, and other economic losses; restitution can be offset against civil damages.
• Allows the service dog user to file a civil lawsuit for violations and the court may award costs and reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing party.
• Notes the bill’s relation to local-funds constitutional provisions and its effective date (becomes law after specific procedural steps, with exceptions under the local-funds amendment).

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Crimes and Offenses