In Wisconsin, you can break into a vehicle to rescue a pet, child in distress after calling police

MILWAUKEE -- Did you know? A law, passed in Wisconsin in November of 2015 prevents Good Samaritans from being sued for breaking into a hot vehicle to rescue a pet or child in distress.

The law, Assembly Bill 308, requires police to be contacted BEFORE you break into the vehicle to ensure the pet or child are really in danger.

“Hot car” laws like this are becoming increasingly more prevalent, with six enacted in just the last two years and two more pending, according to the Animal Legal Defense Fund.

Wisconsin and Tennessee are the only two states that currently allow people to break into vehicles to rescue an animal, according to the "Animal Legal Defense Fund."

The ALDF notes that prosecutors may be reluctant to bring charges against these rescuers:

“Given bloated dockets, crowded prisons and mandatory sentencing schemes, prosecutors are generally motivated to dismiss or settle cases brought against meritorious defendants. Thus, the person who breaks a car window to free a trapped dog may be lauded, not charged. In fact, since police enjoy similar discretion, the dog’s rescuer may not even be arrested," Jennie James, former ALDF fellow wrote on the ALDF's website.

According to the ALDF, in states without hot car laws, perpetrators may still be prosecuted under general anti-cruelty laws.

In all, 21 states currently have some form of a "hot car" law on the books.