Florida Dexter's Law: How to Search the FDLE Animal Cruelty Database
Short answer: Florida has a public FDLE animal cruelty offender search created through Dexter's Law (HB 255). The live search covers people tied to qualifying Florida Statute § 828.12 cases through a conviction or a guilty or nolo contendere plea, regardless of adjudication. It is useful when screening a potential adopter, foster, or private rehoming applicant — but a clean search result is not a guarantee that a person has no animal-abuse history.
Dexter's Law at a glance
Original law: CS/HB 255 (2025), commonly called Dexter's Law.
FDLE public search: Live and searchable by name.
Covered statute: Florida Statute § 828.12, cruelty to animals.
Who can appear: Individuals convicted of, or pleading guilty or nolo contendere to, a qualifying § 828.12 offense, regardless of adjudication.
Sentencing change: A 1.25 Criminal Punishment Code worksheet multiplier applies when the primary offense is qualifying aggravated animal cruelty involving knowing and intentional torture or torment that injured, mutilated, or killed the animal.
2026 database update: Florida enacted additional data, retention, and removal rules, with enhanced information required on the FDLE site by January 1, 2027.
What Dexter's Law actually created
Dexter's Law was enacted in 2025 after the killing of Dexter, a shelter dog adopted in Pinellas County. The law had two major statewide effects: it created the public FDLE animal cruelty offender list and added a sentencing multiplier for a narrow category of aggravated animal cruelty cases.
The original 2025 legislation required FDLE, beginning January 1, 2026, to post in a searchable format the names of people who had been convicted of, or entered a guilty or no-contest plea to, a violation of Florida Statute § 828.12. The live FDLE page remains publicly accessible and currently states that its data reflects qualifying convictions and guilty or nolo contendere pleas.
How to search the FDLE animal cruelty offender list
- 1Open the official FDLE Dexter search: FDLE Aggravated Animal Cruelty Search. Use the official state site rather than a copied third-party list.
- 2Search the person's legal name: The live tool provides first, middle, and last-name fields. If you are screening a potential adopter, ask for the same legal name used on the adoption application.
- 3Do not stop at a name match: A common name can produce identity confusion. Compare the record details that FDLE provides and, where needed, contact the criminal-justice agency in the jurisdiction where the offense occurred.
- 4Do not treat "no results" as a safety certificate: The database is tied to qualifying Florida § 828.12 dispositions. It is not a nationwide criminal-history search and it cannot reveal conduct that never produced a qualifying disposition.
- 5Use it as one part of adoption screening: References, household consent, a conversation about current pets, veterinary history where appropriate, and a written adoption agreement can all add context that a name-only database search cannot provide.
Who appears in the Florida database?
The controlling trigger is a qualifying case under Florida Statute § 828.12. The FDLE page says its data reflects individuals who have been convicted of, or entered a guilty or nolo contendere plea to, offenses specified under that statute. The statute also expressly uses the phrase "regardless of adjudication", which matters because a no-contest plea with adjudication withheld may still fall within the database rule.
| Situation | What it means for the FDLE list |
|---|---|
| Conviction under Florida Statute § 828.12 | Within the statutory database category. |
| Guilty plea to a qualifying § 828.12 offense | Within the statutory category. |
| Nolo contendere plea to a qualifying § 828.12 offense | Within the statutory category, regardless of adjudication. |
| Animal-related offense under a different statute | Do not assume it appears; the Dexter database rule is specifically tied to § 828.12. |
| Animal cruelty case from another state | Do not assume it appears. The Florida list is not a national animal-abuse database. |
| Arrest with no qualifying disposition | An arrest alone is not the same as the qualifying conviction or plea language used by the statute. |
The database changed again in 2026
This is the part many early Dexter's Law summaries now miss. Florida passed additional animal-welfare legislation in 2026 that expanded what FDLE must collect and display. The original list did not simply freeze in its January 2026 form.
The original Dexter's Law public searchable list became operational.
CS/SB 1004 took effect and required a more detailed FDLE dataset to be posted by January 1, 2027.
Chapter 2026-78 (HB 559) has this effective date and adds clearer retention periods plus a removal procedure for qualifying overturned or sealed records.
Florida law requires the enhanced searchable information set to be posted by this date.
Under the 2026 statutory update, the expanded public information includes names and aliases, date of birth, race, county of conviction, charge or charges, case number, disposition, identifying marks and tattoos, and a booking photograph related to the animal cruelty offense.
How long does a person stay on the list?
Florida's 2026 amendments establish a tiered retention schedule rather than a blanket "10-year registry" rule. The current 2026 statute sets the following periods:
| Qualifying disposition | Posting period in the 2026 statutory update |
|---|---|
| First misdemeanor conviction | 3 years from the date of conviction |
| First felony conviction | 5 years from the date of conviction |
| Subsequent misdemeanor or felony conviction | 10 years from the date of conviction |
Chapter 2026-78 carries an October 1, 2026 effective date. It also creates a process for someone whose conviction has been overturned or whose relevant criminal-history record has been sealed to petition for removal. After adequate documentation is received, the statute requires FDLE to remove qualifying information within 30 days.
Does every Florida shelter have to check Dexter's database?
No statewide requirement in Dexter's Law says that every shelter, rescue, breeder, or private owner must run the FDLE search before transferring an animal. The law creates and governs the public database; it does not turn every adoption into a mandatory state background-check process.
Individual shelters can adopt stricter internal screening policies, and local rules may add requirements. A rescue may choose to make an FDLE search part of its application workflow, while another organization may combine it with references, landlord verification, veterinary history, or a home visit.
A safer screening workflow before rehoming a cat or dog
Confirm identity
Use the person's full legal name and enough non-sensitive context to avoid confusing two people with the same name.
Run the FDLE search
Use the official Florida tool and review the result rather than relying on screenshots or social-media claims.
Ask about the home
Discuss current animals, household members, housing restrictions, indoor/outdoor plans, and who will provide veterinary care.
Check references when appropriate
A prior veterinary or rescue reference can provide context the public database cannot.
Use a written transfer record
Document the animal's identity, known medical information, microchip details, and agreed transfer date.
Plan follow-up
For rescue placements, a reasonable follow-up policy can help identify problems after the animal leaves foster or shelter care.
What Dexter's Law changed about sentencing
The database is only one half of Dexter's Law. The 2025 legislation also amended Florida's Criminal Punishment Code worksheet. When the primary offense is aggravated animal cruelty under § 828.12(2) and the qualifying finding involves knowing and intentional torture or torment that injured, mutilated, or killed the animal, the defendant's subtotal sentence points are multiplied by 1.25.
That does not mean every animal-cruelty case receives a 25% sentence increase. The multiplier is tied to the specific worksheet conditions described in the statute.
Separately, § 828.12 provides that aggravated animal cruelty is a third-degree felony and includes mandatory minimum fines and treatment requirements for certain qualifying conduct. A second or subsequent aggravated-animal-cruelty conviction carries additional mandatory consequences under the statute.
What the database cannot tell you
- It is not national. A person with a cruelty conviction only in another state may not be identified through this Florida-specific § 828.12 search.
- It is disposition-based. Conduct that was never reported, never charged, or never resulted in a qualifying plea or conviction is outside what this tool can reveal.
- A name match needs verification. Similar names can belong to different people.
- A clean result is not a character assessment. Adoption decisions still require ordinary judgment and screening.
- The database itself is evolving. Florida's 2026 amendments expand the information FDLE is required to display and formalize retention and removal rules.
Related Florida animal-law guides on Patify
Dexter's Law sits inside a broader Florida animal-protection framework. For related statewide rules, see Patify's guide to Florida cat abandonment and animal-cruelty penalties. If you are preparing for storms or evacuation, our Florida cat hurricane evacuation and Trooper's Law guide covers a different set of emergency-protection rules.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Florida's official animal cruelty offender search?
The official public search is hosted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement at its Dexter animal-cruelty search page. Use the FDLE site rather than an unofficial copied registry.
Does a no-contest plea appear?
Florida's statutory language includes a plea of nolo contendere, regardless of adjudication, when it is tied to a qualifying violation of § 828.12.
Does everyone stay listed for 10 years?
No. Florida's 2026 statutory update establishes three years for a first misdemeanor conviction, five years for a first felony conviction, and ten years for a subsequent misdemeanor or felony conviction. Chapter 2026-78 has an October 1, 2026 effective date.
Is the FDLE database updated every day?
FDLE's live page does not promise a fixed daily refresh. It says the information is updated when FDLE receives final disposition data.
Do shelters have to search every adopter?
Dexter's Law itself does not impose a statewide requirement that every shelter or rescue screen every applicant through the database. Organizations may adopt their own policies, and local rules can differ.
What if a record is wrong or no longer legally valid?
FDLE directs questions about specific entries to the criminal-justice agency in the jurisdiction where the offense occurred. Florida's 2026 amendments also establish a petition process for removal when a conviction has been overturned or the relevant criminal-history record has been sealed.
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Get Patify- Florida Department of Law Enforcement — live animal cruelty offender search
- Florida Senate — CS/HB 255 (2025) Dexter's Law bill summary
- Florida Statute § 828.12 — Cruelty to animals
- Florida Senate — CS/SB 1004 (2026), Chapter 2026-76
- Florida Senate — CS/HB 559 (2026), Chapter 2026-78
- Executive Office of the Governor — Dexter's Law signing announcement
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