Bill to outlaw abandoning pets during disasters clears first hurdle

The Leon County Humane Society said Trooper showed signs of stress, but has "smiled" a few times since being in their care. (Leon County Humane Society via Facebook/Fresh Take Florida)

The bill that would outlaw abandoning a pet outside during a natural disaster – prompted by a viral video of a bull terrier rescued last year ahead of an approaching hurricane – passed its first hurdle unanimously on Tuesday in the Legislature.

The Senate Criminal Justice Committee approved SB 150 8-0 during a brief hearing in Tallahassee.

The bill’s sponsor and his colleagues in the Senate referred to the proposal as “Trooper’s Law,” named after the dog tied to a pole in standing water along Interstate 75 near Tampa before a Florida Highway Patrol trooper saved him.

The Animal Control Association, Humane Society of the United States and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office supported the bill. So did Sen. Jason Pizzo of Hollywood, one of the Democrats on the Republican-led committee.

“Great bill, great idea …Thank you for bringing this very good bill, sir,” Pizzo said to Sen. Don Gaetz, a Pensacola Republican who sponsored the bill, during the debate portion of the hearing.

The bill would increase the penalties for abandoning animals using a restraint during a natural disaster and make doing so a third-degree felony, which could lead to a five-year prison sentence and a fine of up to $10,000.

If passed, the bill would take effect July 1. Republican Reps. Philip Griffitts of Panama City and Susan Plasencia of Winter Park filed a companion bill in the House.

The bill is a result of a heartfelt story after a Florida man left a bull terrier restrained to a pole as Category 5 Hurricane Milton approached Florida back in October. The highway patrol found the dog – trembling and distressed – tied to a pole in standing water. The agency posted a video on social media showing the black-and-white dog tied in an area where flooding water almost covered its legs. The video went viral, and the dog was affectionately renamed Trooper.

Investigators said Giovanny Aldama Garcia, 23, of Ruskin, east of St. Petersburg, had owned the dog, which he called Jumbo, since it was a puppy and had been trying unsuccessfully to get rid of him for weeks.

Court records said Aldama Garcia’s mother, Mabel Garcia Gomez, 53, had stopped their car Wednesday on I-75 during the family’s evacuation to Georgia from heavy rain ahead of the raging hurricane, letting the dog out of the vehicle. Aldama Garcia said he last saw the dog in standing water and left it behind.

A South Florida family later adopted Trooper, Frank and Carla Spina of Parkland.

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Gabriel Velasquez Neira reports via Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. The reporters can be reached at [email protected]. You can donate to support our students here.