Animal abusers named in Florida’s online, searchable database
After a rescue dog was violently murdered by his new owner, Florida now provides a registry of animal abusers, which members of the public can use to screen potential adopters.
Florida’s first searchable, statewide database of animal abusers is now online.
Published and maintained by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), the database lists anyone who has been convicted of, or who has pled guilty or no-contest to, charges of animal cruelty.
Anyone can use the database, which is on the FDLE’s website. It is hoped that individual pet sellers, rescue groups, and animal shelters will consult the database to screen potential owners.
Those on the database are banned from owning, living with, or working with, animals.
Part of Dexter’s Law, the database was signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis in May 2025. The FDLE was given until January 2026 to get the database fully operational.
Dexter’s Law is named in honor of a four-year-old bulldog mix, killed shortly after adoption.
Just days after being rescued from Pinellas County Animal Services, Dexter was found decapitated and dumped in a local park. He had been wrapped in a plastic bag and was found floating in mangroves at Fort Desoto Park in May 2024. Police identified Dexter from his microchip.
In February 2025, a jury convicted Domingo Rodriguez of aggravated cruelty to animals and unlawful disposal of bodies of dead animals. According to prosecutors, Rodriguez killed Dexter the day after adopting him.
Credit: Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
A judge sentenced Rodriguez to a little over a year in jail, and a $500 fine. The case, and sentencing, sparked outrage. DeSantis, whose family adopted a rescue dog in early 2024, was compelled to act.
"Across Florida, we've seen horrifying instances of animal cruelty that demand a stronger response from our justice system," he said.
"You've got that small number of people who just don't have the same basic care for the pets and these animals that almost everybody else does, and that can turn very sadistic, as we saw in Dexter's case," DeSantis added.
There is a small number of state and local governments that already offer a searchable registry of animal abusers, including New York City and Tennessee.
Suffolk County, New York, was the first to pass such a law, in 2010. Those named on the list must pay an annual fee to maintain the registry, which contains photos, birth dates, and addresses of each offender.
The FDLE database provides only the offenders’ names, but Debbie Darino – an animal rights advocate who spearheaded Dexter’s Law and who fought for a similar database in Volusia County – recently said that she hopes more information will soon be added.
Currently, the FDLE’s list, which is arranged alphabetically and can be downloaded, stands at more than 1,700 offenders.
In addition to the database, Dexter’s Law also sets out stronger punishments for cases of animal abuse. Judges refer to a points system based on severity levels from 1 to 10 to help them determine the right punishment. Under Dexter’s Law, the sentencing score for aggravated animal cruelty has now increased by 1.25 points.
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