P.R. Laws tit. 5, § 1670
(a) A person shall be guilty of the crime of aggravated animal abuse if the person willfully or knowingly:
(1) Tortures an animal, or
(2) kills an animal under circumstances that show there was malice aforethought or a gross disregard for life.
(b) Aggravated animal abuse is typified as a second-degree felony that entails punishment by imprisonment for a term of not less than eight (8) years and one (1) day and not more than fifteen (15) years.
(1) If upon conviction, the accused qualifies and avails him/herself of serving time on probation or of any alternative method other than jail imprisonment, the punishment shall entail a mandatory fine ranging from ten thousand [dollars] ($10,000) to twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, aggravated animal abuse shall be typified as a second-degree felony without the right to alternate benefits other than jail imprisonment if:
(1) The person committing the crime of animal abuse has been previously convicted of one or more offenses relative to:
(A) Any law concerning animal protection in Puerto Rico or equivalent laws or regulations of another jurisdiction; or
(B) any statute of Puerto Rico concerning domestic violence, child abuse or elderly abuse, or equivalent laws from another jurisdiction, or
(C) the person knowingly abuses an animal in the immediate presence of a minor. For purposes of this paragraph, a minor shall be in the immediate presence of an instance of animal abuse if such an instance is seen or directly perceived in any manner by the minor.
History —Aug. 4, 2008, No. 154, § 2.7.