Georgia could convict more people of dogfighting-related crimes and send them to prison for longer stretches under a bill advancing in the state Senate.
The Senate Public Safety Committee voted 6-3 Wednesday to approve Senate Bill 68, which would apply Georgia’s racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations law to dogfighting. Applying the state RICO law would result in prison sentences of five to 20 years for convictions, up from one to 10 years now.
“I hope this will give our police and prosecutors a stronger tool to target these organized criminals,” said the bill’s sponsor, Republican Sen. Rick Williams of Milledgeville.
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