Lynsey Legier joins MSPCA-Angell Animal Protection Team

In November, the MSPCA welcomed their first Staff Attorney, Lynsey Legier, to the Animal Protection Division (APD). Lynsey is a former Assistant District Attorney, who for over ten years specialized in the prosecution of animal cruelty cases. As part of the prosecution of these very important cases – that highlight the link between violence perpetrated against both humans and animals – Lynsey vigorously advocated on behalf of those voiceless animal victims who had been harmed by the humans they trusted to keep them safe. She became a resource for law enforcement, animal control officers, other Assistant District Attorneys, judges, and other stakeholders in the criminal justice system.

One of Lynsey’s greatest successes as an ADA was her role as the trial attorney on the case of Commonwealth v. Duncan, 467 Mass. 746 (2014), a case that improved the state of the law for animals in the Commonwealth. In the Duncan case, the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) held that the police were permitted to enter the property of a dog owner without a warrant in order to render aid to one live emaciated and freezing pit bull dog and to seize as evidence the bodies of two others, who had frozen to death on a cold January day. Because the police had undertaken this action in order to render emergency assistance to the animals, the SJC found their actions objectively reasonable and held that their ruling would extend to future police action, but only under certain narrow exceptions. Prior to this case, the law required police to obtain a warrant whenever animals were in need of emergency aid, despite the fact that police could assist humans without a warrant.

Lynsey’s love of animals and passion for zealously arguing on their behalf began when she rescued Tyson in 2006, an abandoned pit bull whom her friends and family joked was more like a 4-legged child, than a dog. In addition to easing the stress of law school for her, he became her motivation to pursue advocating on behalf of pit bull-type dogs, who are often stereotyped as dangerous. Lynsey began focusing her studies on criminal law at Suffolk University School of Law, where she participated in a directed study focusing on the ineffectiveness of breed-specific legislation. She also interned with the Advocacy Department at MSPCA (bringing her career full-circle) and became co-president of the student organization section of the Animal Legal Defense Fund.

As Staff Attorney, Lynsey supports the APD by addressing legal issues with animal cruelty cases and with the holding of seized or abandoned animals. She also provides guidance in other types of civil actions that could help animals at risk achieve better outcomes, as well as assisting with legislative drafting and other advocacy matters.

In collaboration with MSPCA’s law enforcement department, Lynsey is developing relationships with and will offer training to law enforcement, judges, prosecutors, animal control agencies, veterinarians, and animal welfare professionals. Additionally, she is developing resources for municipalities, law enforcement, and other animal-related entities with guidance on a variety of animal law issues, including helping to identify and understand the challenges and best practices for humane law enforcement cases. Lynsey can be reached at LLegier@mspca.org.