While we may not have it for long, here in Michigan, we know heat. We get the kind of brutal summer days that turn your steering wheel into a branding iron for your palms. So what happens when you spot an innocent pup locked inside a sweltering Meijer parking lot?
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Your gut, like mine, may say, “Break the window and save the dog!”, but not so fast. Michigan’s laws may not have your back.
Does Michigan Law Protect Good Samaritans?
A dog looks out from inside a parked car with the windows up.
According to Michigan State University’s Animal Legal and Historical Center there are 31 states that have laws that either “prohibit leaving an animal in a confined vehicle under dangerous conditions” or protect the person who breaks the window to save it. I was shocked to learn that Michigan isn’t one of them.
But then, I thought, maybe as you did, breaking a window to save a life must be protected under some type of Good Samaritan Law. Sadly, Michigan has no such law.
Consequences?
A dog looks outside the car window while locked inside.
Technically, in Michigan, if you were to save Lassie, Chance, Shadow, Santa’s Little Helper, and Pluto from certain death by breaking a car window, you could face breaking and entering, destruction of property, and other fun charges that will result in you needing a lawyer who is better than the jerk’s that locked an animal in a car oven.
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So long as your lawyer can prove that the vehicle owner’s act violated Michigan’s animal cruelty laws, you should be ok. Bonus points: Find Law says if you took pictures or video showing that the animal was in peril, you’ll likely need that if the case goes to court.
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Gallery Credit: Rob Carroll
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