MN Judges Criminal Benchbook

In early 2021, an animal cruelty chapter (Chapter 28) was added to the Minnesota Judges Criminal Benchbook, 7th Edition, which is published by Minnesota Continuing Legal Education (Minn CLE).

This chapter focuses on Minnesota animal cruelty laws, legal precedent, and related issues. Table of Contents is below.

The MN Judges Criminal Benchbook covers several topics, including post-arrest procedures, search and seizure issues, sexual assault and abuse, driving while impaired, and other legal issues. Judges and prosecutors often refer to the Benchbook while conducting legal research on Minnesota criminal laws and related issues.

Animal Folks convened a team to write the "animal cruelty" chapter, covering Minnesota Statutes Chapter 343 (Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), pre-trial issues, selected issues in animal cruelty trials, sentencing issues, other (selected) animal cruelty crimes, and special issues such as the link between human and animal violence. Comments and practice tips are also included. The team included a Minnesota county attorney, a retired judge from the MN Court of Appeals, a civil attorney (inactive status), and the executive director of Animal Folks. See bios below.

To access and purchase the Minnesota Judges Criminal Benchbook with the Animal Cruelty Chapter, go to: Minn. CLE

The mission of Animal Folks is to protect animals and prevent cruelty through constructive and sustainable reforms of the Minnesota criminal and civil justice systems. Adding this chapter to the Benchbook is one example of positive change for the enforcement of law and protection of animals.

If you have questions about the above, contact Ann Olson, Animal Folks Executive Director, at info@animalfolks.org.

• Animal Law Section — The four authors (below) of the Animal Cruelty Chapter in the MN Judges Criminal Benchbook spoke on October 26, 2021 to the Animal Law Section of the Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA). The Animal Cruelty Chapter was published by the MN CLE.

• Minnesota Continuing Legal Education (CLE) conference — A presentation about animal cruelty law was held on August 24, 2021 at the Minnesota Continuing Legal Education conference. Attended by legal professionals, the presentation focused on the animal cruelty chapter recently added to the Minnesota Judges Criminal Benchbook, published by MN CLE. The chapter covers Minnesota Statutes Chapter 343 (Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) and related anti-cruelty laws and topics. Speakers were the four authors of the chapter; see below.

Reese Frederickson, esq., is the County Attorney for Pine County, Minnesota. He graduated from the University of Minnesota-Duluth; has a M.B.A. from the University of New Mexico; and has a J.D. from the Mitchell Hamline School of Law and was an editor of the Mitchell Hamline Law Review. In 2017, Reese was named a Policy Fellow at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs. In 2016, he was named “Attorney of the Year” by Minnesota Lawyer magazine. In 2016, he was the first lawyer to be published in the academic journal Veterinary Pathology (“Demystifying the Courtroom: Everything the Veterinary Pathologist Needs to Know About Testifying in an Animal Cruelty Case”, September 2016, Volume 53(5)). He has ten years of experience as a prosecutor and has tried numerous jury trials. Reese also served on active duty as a captain in the U.S. Air Force.

Judge Gordon Shumaker (Ret.) graduated from the University of St. Thomas with a B.A. in English, and received an M.A. in Teaching in 1965 from that school. He earned a J.D. from William Mitchell College of Law in 1971. He served as a Judge of the Minnesota District Court for 16 years and as a Minnesota Court of Appeals Judge for 13 years. He has been an adjunct professor of Evidence at William Mitchell College of Law, Hamline University Law School, and the University of Minnesota Law School, and, at the latter school, he has also been adjunct professor of Trial Practice and currently teaches Judicial Writing there. He is author of Rulings on Evidence--An Evidentiary Manual for Minnesota Trial Judges and Judicial Officers (an Attorneys). He also serves as a consultant for the Animal Folks organization.

Marianne Settano Shumaker attended University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire where she received a BA in Criminal Justice and received her JD from Hamline University School of Law. She was a trial lawyer for 31 years until she retired in 2018. The last 8 years of her career she was a regional attorney for Nationwide Insurance Company and managed 10 trial offices in Texas, Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota. She is currently on the Board of Directors of Animal Folks.

Ann Olson is the founder and executive director of Animal Folks (AF), a nonprofit organization with a mission to protect animals and people by systemically improving the enforcement of animal law. In her role, she has led multiple initiatives, including the compilation and analysis of over 1,300 animal cruelty cases in Minnesota and development of training curriculum and materials on animal cruelty for veterinarians, veterinary students, and law enforcement. She is the author/editor of Reporting Animal Cruelty: The Role of the Veterinarian. As a lobbyist, she has also worked to pass state and local humane legislation. Prior to founding Animal Folks, Ann worked as a writer and strategist in California, Minnesota, and Hong Kong.