Väärikkälä Sofia, Koskela Tarja, Hänninen Laura, Nevas Mari
Department of Food Hygiene and Environmental Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 66 (Agnes Sjöbergin katu 2), 00014 Helsingin Yliopisto, Finland.
Research Centre for Animal Welfare, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 57, 00014 Helsingin Yliopisto, Finland.
Animals (Basel). 2020 Apr 19;10(4):715. doi: 10.3390/ani10040715.
EU legislation requires the violations of animal welfare standards to be sanctioned. Our aim was to evaluate criminal sanctions concerning violations of cattle and pig welfare on Finnish farms. We analyzed 196 court cases heard in Finnish district courts from 2011 to 2016. Almost all the cases (95%) concerned the violations of cattle welfare, of which 61% occurred on small farms. The lack of cleanliness and inadequate feeding and watering were the most common reported violations. Median time span from the start date of an offending to a judgement was slightly less than two years. Of the cases, 96% resulted in conviction. The court did not perceive the violations as being highly blameworthy as a small fine and a short conditional imprisonment were the most often imposed sanctions. A ban on the keeping of animals was used as a precautionary measure in half of the cases. Veterinarians were shown to have an important role in the initiation of criminal procedures, providing evidence for the police, and acting as witnesses. Therefore, it is crucial to achieve a well-functioning collaboration between veterinarians and the police and prosecutors. The expertise of these authorities on animal welfare legislation should also be emphasized to improve the efficacy of criminal procedures.
欧盟立法要求对违反动物福利标准的行为进行制裁。我们的目的是评估芬兰农场中有关违反牛和猪福利的刑事制裁情况。我们分析了2011年至2016年在芬兰地方法院审理的196起案件。几乎所有案件（95%）都涉及违反牛的福利，其中61%发生在小型农场。报告中最常见的违规行为是缺乏清洁以及喂养和饮水不足。从违规开始到判决的中位时间跨度略少于两年。在这些案件中，96%的案件导致有罪判决。法院并不认为这些违规行为应受到高度谴责，因为最常判处的制裁是小额罚款和短期缓刑。在一半的案件中，禁止饲养动物被用作预防措施。事实证明，兽医在启动刑事程序、为警方提供证据以及作为证人方面发挥着重要作用。因此，兽医与警方和检察官之间建立良好的合作至关重要。还应强调这些当局在动物福利立法方面的专业知识，以提高刑事程序的效力。
