Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi my name is Rob,I am part of a CIHS,ISUHS.I am doing a speach for the I.S.U club and its about the Illinois laws,one question I have is regards to venomoids,are they legal? From my understanding there is no laws pertaining to them,also crocodillian laws,when a raid was done on Lee Watsons reptile swap,they recieved many tickets for alligators and caimens,but all were dismissed in court,what is the lagal status of alligators,and caimens.I know they are offered for sale by several people and its no big secret.Also is there permits that you can obtain for owning,venomous or alligators or any of the other illegal reptiles? Iwas also told that most of the state laws are for people selling reptiles,like the 6 foot rule.Please shed light on this subject so I may be able to give an truthful and very imformative speech.Thanks for all your help.

Rob, I am the president of the ISU herp club/Illinois State Herpetological Society. I am unaware of the speech you are giving but I would be more than willing to set it up for you. I am trying to remember who you are as well. As far as Illinois laws reguarding venomoid animals they are illegal. It is all venomous snakes by nature which is the law. Also, there are ways you may obtain and keep these animals if you are an exhibitor which is becoming more difficult with new laws passing. As far as the crocs and aligators there is no laws banning them but only a size regulation. The reason they were dismissed in court was because they were basing the laws on the laws for a pet store which is not allowed to sell croc species or snakes over 6 ft. Thanks for your interest and I look foward to hearing more from you.

I am sorry, I remember you now. We spoke over kingsnake a while back. I look foward to seeing what you prepare and if you keep in touch with me I will arrange for your speech. I always appreciate people who are willing to organize a presentation to share with the organization. I have to spend so much of my time organizing the events and structure of the organization I rarely have time to set up a presentaion in between meetings. I am very interested to see what addition information you obtain and look foward to seeing you at this semesters meetings. Thanks again.

...I'm sending you both an email so I can explain it correctly to you.

Scott Ballard

Could I get a copy of that e-mail?

Thanks,
George Knaack
GLK HERP
glkherp@tbcnet.com

Put the email here so it can be scrutinized for correctness like the rest of us... ~Bill~
Link

could I get a copy of Illinois laws from somebody? I have a customer near Chicago, Elmwood Park to be exact, that wants to purchase a large boa from me. He has told me that they are legal but I have not been able to verify this for myself. The boa is already around 7'-6". It may not grow to be 8'-0"which is the Houston law) or it may I can't say. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks, John
Link

That length is well under the state length limit. The only problems that there could be is if your customer lives in a municipality or county that has a more restrictive length limit than the state of Illinois'. You can send me a personal email if you have any other questions. Thanks.

Scott Ballard
IL Dept. of Natural Resources

Hey everyone,
Here's the law that I pulled from the Illinois statutes:

The Illinois Dangerous Animal Act says:

No person shall have a right of property in, keep, harbor, care for, act as custodian of or maintain in his possession any "dangerous animal" except at a properly maintained zoological park, federally licensed exhibit, circus, scientific or educational institution, research laboratory, veterinary hospital or animal refuge in an escape-proof enclosure.

Some definitions:
"Dangerous animal" means a lion, tiger, leopard, ocelot, jaguar, cheetah, margay, mountain lion, lynx, bobcat, jaguarundi, bear, hyena, wolf or coyote, or any poisonous or life-threatening reptile.

The term "life-threatening" is commonly understood to mean that which might possibly attack humans, and which is reasonably capable of killing humans in the event of such an attack. People v. Fabing, 143 Ill. 2d 48, 155 Ill. Dec. 816, 570 N.E.2d 329 (1991).

--EVIDENCE HELD SUFFICIENT
Two Burmese pythons were properly classified as life-threatening because a reasonable possibility existed that a 15 to 20 foot Burmese python could constrict around a human, was capable of killing a human and experts noted the occurrence of snake attacks on humans, that pythons constrict in self-defense and the physical capability of large snakes to kill. People v. Fabing, 220 Ill. App. 3d 620, 163 Ill. Dec. 297, 581 N.E.2d 248 (1 Dist. 1991).

--LEGISLATIVE INTENT
By including the term "life-threatening," the legislature clearly intended to prohibit ownership of reptiles which, although not poisonous, are nonetheless life threatening. People v. Fabing, 143 Ill. 2d 48, 155 Ill. Dec. 816, 570 N.E.2d 329 (1991).

--SPECIES
Although evidence exists showing that alligators as a species are life-threatening, the defendant's four foot alligator was not life-threatening where the state utterly failed to present any evidence on this point. People v. Fabing, 220 Ill. App. 3d 620, 163 Ill. Dec. 297, 581 N.E.2d 248 (1 Dist. 1991).
The temperament of each individual reptile may not be considered when determining whether that reptile is life threatening; rather, a determination of whether it is reasonably possible that an animal will attack humans must be made on a species wide basis. People v. Fabing, 143 Ill. 2d 48, 155 Ill. Dec. 816, 570 N.E.2d 329 (1991).

--TEST
An animal will be considered life-threatening when the following two requirements are met: first, there must exist a reasonable possibility that the reptile will attack a human; second, in the case of such an attack, the reptile must be reasonably capable of killing. These requirements must be determined on a species-wide basis, with consideration given to characteristics common to other members of the relevant species; the individual temperament of the reptile in question may not be considered. People v. Fabing, 220 Ill. App. 3d 620, 163 Ill. Dec. 297, 581 N.E.2d 248 (1 Dist. 1991).

For those interested, this comes from Illinois Compiled Statutes Annotated, Chapter 720. It falls under:
CHAPTER 720. CRIMINAL OFFENSES
OFFENSES AGAINST THE PUBLIC
ILLINOIS DANGEROUS ANIMALS ACT

Let me know if you would like more info.
Jake Li