Penal Law § 195.12

Harming an animal trained to aid a person with a disability in the first degree  ·  as in force on May 31, 2026

§ 195.12 Harming an animal trained to aid a person with a disability in

the first degree.

A person is guilty of harming an animal trained to aid a person with a disability in the first degree when such person:

1. intentionally causes physical injury to such animal while it is in the performance of aiding a person with a disability, and thereby renders such animal permanently incapable of providing such aid to such person, or to another person with a disability; or

2. intentionally kills such animal while it is in the performance of aiding a person with a disability.

Harming an animal trained to aid a person with a disability in the first degree is a class A misdemeanor.

Official sourcehttps://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PEN/195.12

In plain English

A person commits first-degree harm to a trained aid animal by:

The offense is a class A misdemeanor.

Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.

In print

This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.