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Henrico adopts local animal‑cruelty registry but removes booking photos from public listing
Summary
The board voted to create a local animal‑cruelty registry (effective for convictions on or after July 1, 2024) and approved a substitute ordinance that requires notice to individuals and omits booking photos from the public registry.
Henrico County has adopted a local animal‑cruelty registry after a Dec. 2 debate over how the list should identify convicted individuals. The board substituted and approved an ordinance (2‑94a) that requires individuals to be notified before inclusion and limits the registry fields; the board rejected an alternative that would have allowed booking photos to appear on the public registry.
What the ordinance does: County staff and the Commonwealth's Attorney explained that state law (effective 07/01/2024) authorizes local registries to list names and certain conviction information for specified felony animal‑cruelty offenses. The substitute the board approved adds a notice requirement for individuals and expressly omits booking photographs from the registry’s published content.
Board debate: Two substitute drafts were considered. Substitute B would have included booking photographs (the same photos available under the Freedom of Information Act), while substitute A excluded photos but required notice to individuals and included convictions only on or after July 1, 2024. County legal counsel said FDIA‑available booking photos could be included, but several supervisors argued that the enabling statute lists specific fields and does not expressly authorize photos; one supervisor cited the need to adhere to that statutory scope. Commonwealth’s Attorney Shannon Taylor said she was present to answer legal questions about the ordinance language.
Outcome: The board rejected the substitute that would have allowed booking photos and approved substitute A (no booking photos, notice requirement and July 1, 2024 cutoff). The board directed staff to implement a registry consistent with the approved language.
Why it matters: The registry is intended to assist animal‑welfare organizations and shelters by flagging individuals convicted of certain animal‑cruelty felonies, while the board’s decision reflects concern for statutory limits and privacy implications of publishing photographs.
