Jalisco legislator Veronica Jimenez Vazquez has proposed a new law to punish participation in dog fighting with up to five years in prison and 161,200 pesos in fines.
“To legislate to put an end to pain as spectacle is an intrinsic obligation of a legislator,” said Jimenez, who is a member of the Movimiento Ciudadano party.
Under the proposed law, the minimum sentence and fine would be six months and 16,120 pesos, respectively. In addition, if those found guilty of engaging in dog fighting were also found to work for Animal Control centers, punishments would automatically increase by 50 percent. Finally, Jimenez Vazquez seeks to punish those attending dog fights as spectators with a third of the aforementioned fines and jail times.
The initiative put forth by Jimenez mirrors one recently presented before the federal congress.