'trooper's Law': Florida Bill Aims To Make Abandoning Restrained Dogs In Disasters A Felony

Trooper, the Florida dog abandoned during Hurricane Milton evacuations and rescued by Florida Highway Patrol troopers, is the inspiration behind a Senate Bill making its way through the Florida Legislature.

The Senate Criminal Justice Committee approved SB 150 during a hearing earlier this month. The bill would make abandoning a restrained animal during a natural disaster a third-degree felony.

FHP troopers found Trooper, a Bull Terrier, in belly-high water, abandoned along Interstate 75, near Pebble Creek, north of Tampa during evacuations for Hurricane Milton last year.

He was adopted by Frank Spina and his family in December 2024 .

He came home to a canine sister named Dallas, who is also a Bull Terrier rescue.