In late November, a story emerged from Missouri that involved an injured eagle. The University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine confirmed that an eagle was shot and injured, a rare injury for an eagle to sustain. Veterinarians have helped repair the eagle’s wing that was injured but now, authorities are looking for a suspect that may have committed a federal crime.

The story has many people talking. Not only because it involved an injured bald eagle, but because it brought to attention something that many people thought was just a myth. Is it really a federal crime to kill a bald eagle? Yes, it is, and the eagle does not have to die in order for federal charges to stand. Even injuring an eagle, or any part of an eagle’s nest or eggs could also result in federal charges.

The Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act

Federal lawmakers have been working on a proposal since the beginning of the year and in late October, that piece of legislation came much closer to becoming law. The new law, if passed, would make animal cruelty a federal crime. Currently, animal cruelty laws are largely left to the states to enact and enforce. The proposed bill is an attempt to expand on a law that was passed during the Obama administration. It has not passed yet but has so far received bipartisan support.

Animal Crush Video Prohibition Act of 2010

While Barack Obama was in the White House, he signed into law the Animal Crush Video Prohibition Act of 2010. This law was in response to a series of extremely disturbing videos depicting animal cruelty. The law got its name because the videos often showed animals being crushed, along with a number of other violent acts. This act made it illegal for people to videotape these acts of cruelty.