John and Judy Cox are suing the Huntingdon Valley Hunt Inc., which is based in Furlong, and the club's master of fox hunting, Richard Harris.
In the suit, the Coxes' attorney, Stuart Wilder, says the hunters — who dress in costume and ride on horseback — did not take precautions to prevent people from being injured.
“The defendants took no measures to warn the public or anyone who might be proceeding on public lands in their path that they would be riding through the property at a high rate of speed with excited, unleashed hounds, trained to hunt and kill, pursuing a small animal to kill it or otherwise frighten it,” the suit states.
The lawsuit stems from a Jan. 1 incident at the Dark Hollow Park in Warwick. Judy Cox told police that she was walking her dog, Daisy, who is blind and has hip dysplasia, when five hounds started biting them.
The Coxes told police that they heard the hunt coming and tried to get out of the way, but didn't have enough time. John Cox said he tried to help his wife but was unable to get the hounds off her and Daisy.
Cox said she suffered bites on her arm and a “substantial amount of bruising.” She said she had to take Daisy for emergency veterinary care because she had been bitten multiple times.
In the lawsuit, the Coxes said the terrifying attack lasted at least one minute.
Members of the hunt told news reporters earlier this year that Cox slipped and fell, or the dogs accidentally knocked her over.
Wilder said in the lawsuit that the hunt has endangered other people.
“lt is believed and therefore averred that as a result of one or more incidents that occurred in the past when the defendants engaged in fox hunts or fox chases with unleashed hounds, as well as common experience that dictates that dogs or hounds in public places where other persons and their pets might be encountered should be leashed to avoid attacks by such hounds, the defendants were aware that they had limited ability to control unleashed hounds and that the unleashed hounds could go off the intended course of the hunt or chase and pose a danger to others or their property.
“Defendants' actions as set forth above were outrageous, and demonstrated reckless indifference to the rights of the Plaintiffs and others, and were conscious actions in deliberate disregard of said rights,” the attorney wrote.
Harris was later cited for failure to control the dogs. The state Attorney General's Office investigated the Jan. 1 incident but did not recommend further charges be filed.
The hunts were briefly stopped by the township, which issues permits for fox hunts, but later allowed to continue. Wilder said in the lawsuit that the club was hunting without a permit on the day of the incident.
The Coxes are asking in their suit for judgment “not greater than $50,000,” which is a signal to the courts that the case may be settled through mediation.
(phillyburbs.com - Oct 12, 2012)
