Last Updated on July 2, 2025
You can face serious criminal charges if you have been accused of training or entering your dog in a dog fight. California laws prohibit even witnessing dogfighting displays. Prosecutors take these cases very seriously, and juries are often filled with dog lovers prone to bias against those accused of these charges. It takes a skilled criminal lawyer like Peter M. Liss to fight against these charges and any related animal abuse or illegal gambling allegations.
Penalties for Dog Fighting Charges in California
While dog fighting falls under the broad category of animal cruelty, it is also an expressly prohibited crime in California under Penal Code section 597.5 (PC). Both those who train and enter dogs in these fights and those who attend the events can be charged. As a dog fight spectator, you can be charged with a misdemeanor and face one year in the county jail and a fine of up to $5,000.
On the other hand, those accused of owning, possessing, training, or transporting a dog with the intent to get the animal to fight, will face felony charges, punishable by up to three years in a state prison and a fine of up to $50,000. California laws also apply the same penalties to those who have made their property available for dogfighting.
Additionally, property used in the training and fighting of animals and money made through dog fighting is subject to civil asset forfeiture. If you allow your property to be used for dog fighting, you can even lose the property and be charged with aiding and abetting dog fighting, a felony.
Crimes Related to Dog Fighting Charges
Aside from dog fighting charges, many people involved in these activities may also be charged with related crimes such as gambling or animal cruelty. Because all these offenses carry such serious sentences, anyone arrested for these charges should immediately contact a top criminal defense attorney.
Defenses to Dog Fighting
There are many defenses for these sorts of crimes, but many come down to showing the prosecution does not have enough evidence to prove you are guilty under 597.5 (PC). For example, to be convicted of attending a dogfight, the prosecution must show you knowingly visited the event. You must have gone to the event knowing it was a dogfighting match. If you happened upon a dogfight in the basement of a bar or an acquaintance’s backyard and were arrested, your defense attorneys may argue you had no intention of visiting such an event. This defense cannot be used in your case if you stumbled upon the fight, realized what was happening, and then chose to stay and watch.
Similarly, while you can be charged with owning or training a dog to fight, you cannot be convicted if the dog was entered into such an event without your permission or knowledge. For example, if you raised your dog to be an aggressive guard dog for your property, but someone took him without your consent and started using him to fight, you could not be convicted for owning him or training him to be aggressive.
Other Ways to Challenge Dog Fighting Charges
Sometimes these techniques are not enough to defend someone against such serious allegations. In some cases, your defense lawyers might need to fight to have evidence suppressed after police illegally searched an area without a valid warrant. Similarly, you could be better off negotiating a plea bargain to minimize the charges and sentencing in your case.
There are many different defenses to dog fighting charges, and Peter M. Liss can help you find the best way to challenge accusations related to 597.5 (PC). If you have any questions, please call (760) 643-4050 to schedule a free initial consultation.
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