RÉSUMÉ DIGEST
ACT 261 (HB 213) 2024 Regular Session Hilferty
Existing law provides that the crime of negligent homicide is either of the following:
(1)The killing of a human being by criminal negligence.
(2)The killing of a human being by a dog or other animal when the owner is reckless
and criminally negligent in confining or restraining the dog or other animal.
Prior law provided penalties for the crime of negligent homicide as follows:
(1)Imprisonment with or without hard labor for not more than five years, a fine of not
more than $5,000, or both.
(2)If the victim killed was under the age of 10 years, the offender was required to be
imprisoned at hard labor, without benefit of probation, parole, or suspension of
sentence, for not less than two nor more than five years.
New law changes the maximum penalty from five years to 10 years.
Prior law provided that if the victim was killed by a dog or other animal, the owner of the
dog or other animal was required to be imprisoned with or without hard labor for not more
than five years or fined not more than $5,000, or both.
New law changes the element of the crime to require the owner to also be criminally
negligent and increases the maximum prison sentence from five to 10 years.
Effective August 1, 2024.
(Amends R.S. 14:32(C)(1), (2)(a), and (3))