Ohio is one of only a dozen states without a specific law banning bestiality. Once again, a Franklin County lawmaker is trying to change that. Sen. Jim Hughes, R-Columbus, has joined Sen. Jay Hottinger, R-Newark, in the push to ban an elicit sexual activity that law enforcement says has links to child sex abuse and other deviant behavior.

Ohio is one of only a dozen states without a specific law banning bestiality. Once again, a Franklin County lawmaker is trying to change that.



Sen. Jim Hughes, R-Columbus, has joined Sen. Jay Hottinger, R-Newark, in the push to ban an illicit sexual activity that law enforcement says has links to child sex abuse and other deviant behavior.



�Animal abuse frequently precedes other violent acts and serves as a harbinger of what is to come,� Delaware County Probate/Juvenile Judge David Hejmanowski, recently wrote to lawmakers expressing his support for the bill.



Engaging youths early with necessary interventions, Hejmanowski said, can �hopefully interrupt the process that might otherwise have led to additional violent acts.�



Some have questioned whether the bill is needed, considering Ohio already has animal cruelty laws. But Hughes said there is conduct described in the bill that is not prohibited under current law, especially if there is no known harm to the animal.



Jeremy Hoffman, a detective with the Fairfax County Police Department in Virginia, recently told a Senate committee that almost every child pornographer he arrested also had a collection of bestiality pornography.



�Much like those in our society who choose to abuse children, those who sexually abuse animals lack any semblance of a moral compass. They lack any sense of sexual boundaries,� Hoffman said.



And the problem is prevalent in Ohio, Hoffman said. On the most popular bestiality website, the Ohio forum hosted more than 1,500 ads, nearly all seeking animals for sex or advertising their own animals for others. It was the fourth-largest number of ads in the nation, Hoffman said, nearly triple the average.



Sgt. Dan Johnson of the Franklin County Sheriff�s Office and a member of the special investigations unit wrote to lawmakers that in his years investigating online child enticement and pornography, he has seen a correlation with bestiality. The bill, he said, �will provide law enforcement with a more appropriate tool to use to investigate and charge those who sexually abuse animals..."



Ohio is one of three Midwestern states without an anti-bestiality law, joining Kentucky and West Virginia. The bill is supported by associations representing county prosecutors and veterinarians, along with advocates fighting domestic violence, sexual violence and animal cruelty.



Bestiality would be a second-degree misdemeanor under the bill. It also would authorize a court to order the forfeiture of the animal and require the offender to undergo psychological evaluation or counseling.



Sen. John Eklund, R-Chardon, chairman of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, said he does not have a time frame for moving Senate Bill 195. During committee Wednesday, he raised the question of drawing the line on how to punish someone for a clear psychological problem.



�We need to be ever careful that we�re not criminalizing mental illness,� he said.

jsiegel@dispatch.com



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