Many of us share our homes with four-legged creatures and, with their every act of affection and seemingly boundless joy, our pets have a way of burrowing themselves deep into our hearts. After just a short while, we can’t even imagine our lives without them in it. So, what does the law say should happen to someone who intentionally interferes with our joys of pet ownership by harming or destroying our pet? In February 2000, in a fit of road rage after having been bumped from the rear in traffic by another driver, Andrew Burnett angrily confronted the other driver and took the driver’s bichon frise dog, Leo, from her lap and hurled it into oncoming traffic on a busy road near the San Jose International Airport, where Leo died. Some nine years later (really? it had to take that long?), Burnett was convicted of felony animal cruelty and was

It’s a Tuesday morning, you’ve had your cup of coffee and are on your way to work, and, through no fault of your own, you are involved in an automobile accident. As your car comes to a rest, you are most likely confused, perhaps a bit dazed, and the adrenaline surge has left you just as quickly as it arrived. Other motorists have begun to stop and ask you if you are alright. And, within a brief period of time, the police arrive to investigate the crash. Right now, at perhaps the worst possible moment for you, your right to pursue a personal injury claim for the injuries you have sustained could be in serious danger. You are about to be put through a series of different people questioning you about the collision and the injuries which you may have suffered, whether it is the other driver, other motorists who