| Chapter : | Introduction |
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and treating individuals guilty of animal cruelty, 2 because of a presumed link between abuse of animals and future violence against humans. Resolution 286 also called for federal monies to be allocated to increase scientific understanding of this cycle of violence, and urged institutional cooperation between law enforcement and animal welfare agencies to better identify and treat individuals guilty of violence against animals. In the Senate, William S. Cohen, then senior Republican Senator of Maine, spearheaded the issue. Cohen (1999) introduced the following statement into the Congressional Record:
... Mr. President, it is time that we took a serious look at animal abuse and its link to crime against people ... Abusing animals is a despicable act, and psychologists and criminologists tell us those who lack empathy for animals may also lack empathy for humans. As a result they may be predisposed to other violent behavior ... violence is not an isolated event and animal abuse is often part of a larger cycle of violence. For this reason, violence toward animals must be taken much more seriously. Cruelty to animals can be a predictor of future violence and an indicator of the violence already in the perpetrator's life... I have asked Attorney General Janet Reno to accelerate the Department of Justice's research in this area ... admittedly this is not an exact science [but] we must realize that violent behavior rarely exists in a vacuum ... It is our responsibility to do all that we can ... so that today's animal abusers do not continue these despicable actions and become tomorrow's dangerous felons, thereby perpetuating the cycle of violence that has taken such a devastating toll on our society (pp. 335-337).