Bill > HB4648

This bill amends the Michigan Code of Criminal Procedure by modifying the sentencing guidelines for Offense Variable 3, which addresses physical injury to victims, to now explicitly include companion animals. The bill introduces a parallel point system for injuries to companion animals, with points assigned based on the severity of harm: killing a companion animal can result in 50 or 25 points, life-threatening or permanent injury can earn 15 points, bodily injury requiring medical treatment can receive 5 points, and other injury scenarios are also accounted for. The bill maintains existing provisions that in multiple offender cases, all offenders receive the same injury-related points, and adds specific scoring guidelines for deaths resulting from crimes involving vehicles or other modes of transportation. The bill also clarifies that "requiring medical treatment" refers to the necessity of treatment, not whether treatment was actually obtained. Importantly, this bill is tied to House Bill 4646 and will only take effect if that companion bill is also enacted into law, indicating a coordinated legislative effort to address sentencing guidelines related to crimes involving animals.

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https://legislature.mi.gov/Bills/Bill?ObjectName=2025-HB-4648