Pets as Personal Property in Indiana
We had a recent inquiry about the possible recovery for emotional distress for an owner of a pet in the State of Indiana.
In March of this year, the Court of Appeals again addressed this issue in the case of Keene v. The State of Indiana
The facts in the case are as follows:
..."On November 28, 2004, Keene shot two dogs while hunting on a friend’s property. The two dogs were not on their owner’s property and were seen chasing a deer. The next day, Keene contacted the DNR and notified them that he had shot the two dogs while hunting. On December 9, 2004, he was charged with two counts of Class A misdemeanor criminal mischief.
Melissa Culbertson (“Culbertson”) owned the two dogs. On November 28, 2004, Culbertson noticed that her dogs were missing so the next day she hired a private investigation firm to look into the matter. Culbertson paid $2,501 for this service. When the dogs’ bodies were found, Culbertson had an autopsy performed by her veterinarian that cost $640. The replacement value of each of the dogs was $800. Also, the Culbertson family sought professional counseling in the amount of $540 concerning the loss of their dogs. Finally, Culbertson claimed that she had missed a week of work and took an additional seven days off work to attend court proceedings in this case. She testified that she made over $500,000 per year, yet provided no documentation of this amount. Culbertson claimed $3,000 for one day of lost wages. The trial court determined that she earned $2,500 per day. Culbertson requested $10,890.87 for restitution for the above expenses and for other expenses disallowed by the trial court.
On February 6, 2007, Keene pleaded guilty to both counts of criminal mischief and the trial court sentenced him the same day. The trial court ordered Keene to pay restitution and ordered the Victim’s Assistance office to determine the amount. That office filed a restitution order in the amount of $10,890.87, to which Keene objected. Keene is a truck driver who earns $25,000 per year. He has a twelfth grade education and few possibilities of earning more than his current wage as a truck driver.
After a restitution hearing on May 17, 2007, the trial court ordered Keene to pay restitution in the amount of $1,600 for both dogs, $640 for veterinary autopsy costs, $2,510 for the private investigator, $540 for counseling, and $6,000 for two days of lost income, for a total of $11,290. Keene now appeals..."
Although the Appeals Court ruled on a number of issues, it was clear that the value of the loss of the dogs to Culberson was equal to only the replacement cost as personal property under Indiana Code section 35-50-5-3.
Your pets may be priceless to you.
But in this case at least, there would be no monetary relief, or loss, for a companion animal nor emotional distress for the owner of a dog, in the Hoosier State.
