The pressure comes after two recent dog fights in which pit bulls killed a Corgi- Beagle mix in June and a Shih Tzu last week.
The City Council’s Safety Committee met Wednesday for two reasons: to review a proposed city ordinance that will largely mirror Ohio laws regarding nuisance, dangerous and vicious dogs and to discuss potential ways to prevent an attack before it occurs.
Ohio law defines a dangerous dog as one that without provocation has caused injury to a person, killed another dog or chased or approached a person in a way that causes them to believe it will cause physical injury. Dogs that chase or try to bite someone can be labeled nuisance dogs; dogs that injure or kill other dogs or which are caught running more than three times can be labeled dangerous.
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| Cyrus's owner Earle Hall says his dog isn't violent |
Vicious dogs are labeled such if they kill or seriously injure someone, unless the person was trespassing or committing a crime on the person’s property.
Residents want a municipal ordinance that goes beyond what state law allows and many continued to call for banning of pit bulls. They cited laws in Lakewood and Parma, which have such bans, as proof that Avon Lake should consider the same.
Avon Lake Law Director Abe Lieberman and Prosecutor John Reulbach said banning specific breeds was ruled unconstitutional, and in 2012, Ohio removed pit bulls from their previous definition as vicious dogs.
Reulbach, who continued to be questioned by residents and accused of failing to thoroughly investigate the June dog attack, said the term “without provocation” causes a dilemma when prosecuting dog attacks.
As an example, Johnna Lyman’s corgi-beagle mix ran from the front door toward a pit bull, barking, which led to the attack that killed it.
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| Blame the Victim: John Reulbach refused to enforce the law, arguing that this poor dog provoked the pit bull into ripping its guts out. |
Even though her Corgi-Beagle mix WAS IN ITS OWN YARD WHEN THE ATTACKED OCCURRED, Reulbach said he couldn’t pursue a dangerous dog designation against the pit bull that killed it because Lyman’s dog had provoked the pit bull.
The owner of the pit bull must maintain control over his dog AT ALL TIMES. The owner could not maintain control over the dog and it was running at large and attacked a dog on its own property.
This is classic 'blame the victim' - it's the Corgi's fault because gosh it barked at the pit bull. That's like Ike Turner telling Tina Turner it's her own fault he had to beat her because she mouthed off.
The second attack that occurred in Avon Lake involved two pit bulls that ran from their owner’s yard and killed Perry Pascarella’s Shih Tzu without provocation. Those dogs could be classified as dangerous on Sept. 1 during a court hearing.
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| Killed by pit bulls: RIP Bella |
“I believe the judge is going to deliver justice in that case,” said Councilman David Kos, 4th Ward, who chairs the Safety Committee.
Kos reiterated he will not introduce or support breed-specific legislation, saying although he used to believe all pit bulls are dangerous, he no longer feels that’s the case. The ordinance Avon Lake has under consideration calls for first- through fourth-degree misdemeanor punishments for the owners of dogs classified as a nuisance, dangerous or vicious following attacks, regardless of the breed.
Although Lakewood and Parma ban certain breeds, that doesn’t mean those laws won’t eventually be challenged in court by groups like Ohioans Against Breed Discrimination.
But some Avon Lake residents still questioned whether the city could somehow create its own vicious dog ordinance banning pit bulls.
Other residents like Allen Zang suggested removing the term “without provocation” from the city’s legislation, calling it “a safe harbor large enough to fit the Titanic in,” something Reulbach expressed similar sentiments about.
“We’re concerned way more today with the dog’s rights than we are about the rights of our citizens,” Zang said.
Prevention measures discussed included stronger enforcement of leash laws, support for people who need help training an out-of-control dog, databases letting people know where dogs that have bitten people live and encouraging people to call police if they have a bad feeling about a certain dog.
(Chronicle-Telegram - Aug 21, 2015)
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