Ohio lawmakers took a big step on Wednesday toward banning bestiality in the state as the Ohio's Senate voted 31-0 in favor of a bill criminalizing sex with animals.
Ohio is among a group of roughly a dozen states that does not have a law prohibiting bestiality. If Senate Bill 195 passes through Ohio's GOP-held House, and is signed by the state's Gov. John Kasich, Ohio will join 39 states that have laws prohibiting sex with animals.
The law:
- Prohibits a person from knowingly: (1) engaging in, organizing, promoting, aiding, or abetting specified sex-related activities with an animal, or (2) possessing, selling, or purchasing an animal with the intent that it be subjected to those activities.
- Authorizes the seizure and impoundment of an animal that is the subject of a violation, or attempted violation, of either prohibition.
- ? Authorizes a court sentencing an offender for a violation of either prohibition to order the forfeiture of the animal or require the offender to undergo psychological evaluation or counseling.
A person who violates the law could be charged with a second-degree misdemeanor. The crime would come with up to three months of jail time and a $750 fine.
