Monthly Archives: July 2011

Oakwood, OH: Vicious dog ordinance is a compromise

Posted on July 14, 2011 by | Comments Off

Oakwood, OH has passed a new vicious dog ordinance that is breed-specific… sort of.

Oakwood initially did not have a vicious dog ordinance, and presumably applied and enforced state law with regards to vicious dogs. Ohio state law labels all “pit bull”-type dogs to be “vicious,” and restricts ownership accordingly.

Oakwood recently decided to institute their own vicious dog law. An early draft of the ordinance referred specifically to American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, and Bull Terriers as vicious breeds. This early draft was more detailed than state law, which defines “pit bull” as “any breed commonly known as a pit bull.” The concern with this draft (aside from the obvious, that it was breed-specific) was that if Ohio’s breed-specific state law is repealed via House Bill 14 or similar bill, Oakwood’s ordinance stands on its own and would still contain breed-specific language.

Subsequent revision of the proposal removed the specific reference to “pit bulls.” In its place, however, Oakwood’s new ordinance now refers to Ohio state code definition of a vicious dog. Specifically, it reads that a vicious dog “Is of a breed designated as a vicious dog under Ohio Revised Code Section 955.11 or 955.22, as the same may be amended from time to time.”

By including a reference to state law, rather than specifically naming breeds, Oakwood is now relying on state law to define vicious breeds. If the state law is repealed and replaced with something that is not breed-specific, Oakwood’s ordinance will reflect the repeal.

Oakwood’s new ordinance is a compromise. They must follow state law, which is breed-specific with regards to vicious dogs. They could have gone further, and passed an ordinance that named specific breeds; their ordinance would have remained intact even if the state law had changed. Instead, they chose a middle ground, and their ordinance refers to state law; if state law changes, their ordinance will, too.

All alerts for Oakwood, OH: http://stopbsl.com/?s=oakwood

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Posted in BSL Passed, Ohio

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Marinette, WI: Council committee proposes breed ban

Posted on July 13, 2011 by | 2 Comments

Thanks to Tiffany for the heads up about Marinette!

Marinette, WI, Public Safety and Code Enforcement Committee has written up a proposed ordinance to ban ”pit bulls”; the committee considered the proposal during a meeting today. The committee has decided to perform additional research on the issue before advancing the proposed ordinance to city council.

Residents and locals, please send polite, respectful, informative correspondence to the city council as they prepare to look into the issue further. You may wish to demonstrate the ethical, financial, and public safety failures of BSL and breed bans; you may also wish to provide reasonable, effective, and fair breed-neutral ordinances for their consideration.

Marinette City Hall, 1905 Hall Avenue, Marinette, WI 54143-1716 
Mayor Robert M. Harbick, mayor@marinette.wi.us
Elected officials’ contact information may be viewed here (emails not available): http://www.marinette.wi.us/government/elected_officials.php

The Public Safety and Code Enforcement Committee meets on the second Wednesday of  each month at 4:45 PM. City Council meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 7:00 PM. Call 715.732.5120 for more information.

Pit bull ban?

Marinette is considering banning pit bulls

Published : Wednesday, 13 Jul 2011, 9:42 PM CDT
Reporter: Becky DeVries

MARINETTE – Should people be allowed to own pit bulls? Marinette is considering an ordinance that would keep all pit bulls out of the city. [...]

According to the Marinette public safety and code enforcement committee chair, Marinette’s mayor asked the city attorney to draft an ordinance banning residents from owning pit bulls. [...]

Ten people spoke up at the committee meeting, all against an ordinance banning pit bulls. [...]

The committee unanimously voted to put the idea on hold and look into more research, before making a recommendation to the full city council.[...]

Full article retrieved 7/13/11 from http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/local/north_counties/marinette-considers-pit-bull-ordinance

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Posted in BSL Proposed, Wisconsin

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Trumann, AR: “Pit bulls” now banned

Posted on July 13, 2011 by | 3 Comments

Trumann, AR, has had a breed-specific law in place for many years (all “pit bulls” are regulated as “vicious” dogs). The BSL has apparently not had any good effect on their dog control issues, so last night the city council voted to ban “pit bulls” instead. There is a grandfather clause, but owners of grandfathered “pit bulls” are subject to heavy ownership restrictions.

Going back in my files, it appears that Trumann has occasionally considered an all-out ban since at least 2006. The officials’ reasoning for the ban has consistently been that ”pit bull” owners aren’t complying with the vicious dog law—therefore, a ban is necessary. Officials seem to feel that the same scofflaws that couldn’t or wouldn’t follow the old breed-specific restrictions will suddenly become fine law-abiding citizens now that the new ban is in place.

Trumann City Hall
Mayor: Sheila Walters
Clerk: Marlene Hancock
P.O. Box 100, Trumann, AR 72472
Phone 870.483.5355
Fax: 870.483.6833
citytrumann72472@yahoo.com

Trumann bans pit bulls from city limits

Posted: Jul 13, 2011 12:11 PM CDT
By Josh Harvison

TRUMANN, AR (KAIT) – [...] Members of the council voted in favor of an ordinance to amend Ordinance #499 regarding vicious or dangerous animals. Among the changes in the ordinance include the banning of specific breeds.

“We had a vicious dog ordinance for several years, however, we didn’t feel like it was strong enough,” said [Mayor] Walters.

According to language in the ordinance, all American Pit Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers and other specific breeds will be banned from the city limits. Other animal limitations include animal fighting or attack training.

Section I of the ordinance permits owners to “grandfather” their pit bull pets into the city if they register the animal with the Trumann Animal Control Office within 60 days.[...]

Walters said residents have not abided by other vicious dog ordinances. [...]

Full article retrieved 7/13/11 from http://www.kait8.com/story/15075401/trumann-passes-ordinance-on-pit-bulls

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Posted in Arkansas, BSL Passed

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Savannah, GA: Citizens call for BSL, gather petition signatures

Posted on July 13, 2011 by | 5 Comments

Update 7/22/11: The group claims to have collected 1,000 signatures in support of BSL. The petition will be presented to city council today.

Residents in and around Savannah, please attend upcoming city council meetings to help guide city council response away from breed-specific laws and toward effective breed-neutral options.

Town hall meeting tonight, July 13, 7 PM at Savannah Civic Center.
City Council meeting July 14 and July 28, 2 PM in Council Chambers, City Hall, Second Floor.

Contact info for city council
Mayor Otis Johnson, Ph.D, otis_johnson@savannahga.gov
Edna B. Jackson, EdnaJackson3@comcast.net
Jeff Felser, jfelser@sabrelink.com
Van R. Johnson, II, aldermanjohnson1@aol.com
Mary Osborne, alderwoman.osborne@gmail.com
Larry Stuber, larrystuber@bellsouth.net
Mary Ellen Sprague, memesprague@juno.com
Clifton Jones, Jr., cliftonjjr@aol.com
Tony Thomas, aldermanthomas@aol.com

Email block for cut and paste
otis_johnson@savannahga.gov; EdnaJackson3@comcast.net; jfelser@sabrelink.com; aldermanjohnson1@aol.com; alderwoman.osborne@gmail.com; larrystuber@bellsouth.net; memesprague@juno.com; cliftonjjr@aol.com; aldermanthomas@aol.com

Savannah pit bull attacks spark response

Posted: July 13, 2011 – 12:24am
By Eric Curl and Jan Skutch

[...] Cheryl LaBon, founder and CEO of Women of Wisdom, said her group wants to gather 1,000 signatures by Friday on a “Justice for Javon Petition” to require pit bull owners to keep their dogs in 8-by-12 foot pens in yards in neighborhoods where children 15 and younger live.

Those petitions will be presented to Savannah officials on Monday, she said. City officials previously have said they are reviewing local dog ordinances.[...]

Full article retrieved 7/13/11 from http://savannahnow.com/news/2011-07-13/savannah-pit-bull-attacks-spark-response

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Posted in Georgia, Whispers of BSL

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Dartmouth, MA: Board turns away from BSL discussions

Posted on July 12, 2011 by | Comments Off

The Dartmouth, MA, Select Board has been thinking about dog control options; a breed-specific law was one option suggested by members, but the Select Board no longer intends to pursue BSL due to an excellent and informative presentation by the town’s health director and animal control officer.

The select board intends to instead consider breed-neutral alternatives such as a leash law. Residents and locals may wish to participate in the select board’s discussion and adoption of dog ordinances to ensure that the outcome is reasonable, effective, and breed-neutral.

Contact info and meeting agendas for the Select Board and town administrators can be found here: http://www.town.dartmouth.ma.us/Pages/DartmouthMA_BComm/SelectBoard/index

Dartmouth veers from pit bull crackdown

By Brian Boyd, bboyd@s-t.com
July 12, 2011 12:00 AM

DARTMOUTH — The town’s health director and animal control officer told the Select Board that a bylaw targeting pit bulls could be impractical.

The board did not take any action at its Monday meeting. Instead, it will wait for the officials to recommend alternative ways for dealing with dangerous dogs, such as adopting a leash law. [...]

Full article retrieved 7/12/11 from http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110712/NEWS/107120320/-1/NEWS05

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Posted in Massachusetts, Whispers of BSL

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Greenville, MS: Council passes stricter BSL

Posted on July 10, 2011 by | Comments Off

Greenville, MS, has had breed-specific rules for “pit bull” owners since 2004—though the BSL hasn’t solved their problems with irresponsible owners and vicious dogs. Last week, council considered and approved revisions to the pit bull and vicious dog ordinances that make the breed-specific rules even more strict.

You may read the dog ordinance revisions here (July 5 council agenda): http://www.greenville.ms.us/Agenda_and_Minutes/7-05-11_agenda_revised.pdf

New laws for pit bulls

Posted: July 10, 2011 03:04 AM

GREENVLLE, Miss. (AP) – Greenville pit bull owners will need to start keeping their pets on a shorter leash.

The Delta Democrat Times reports that the city council has approved some changes to previous ordinances to toughen rules on how a pit bull is confined, the distance one can be walked around certain areas, registration of pit bulls, fines and impoundment fees. [...]

Full article retrieved 7/10/11 from http://www.ddtonline.com/news/article_4e020b82-a7ed-11e0-95d6-001cc4c002e0.html

 

 

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Posted in BSL Passed, Mississippi, Results of BSL

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Oakwood, OH reminder: Council to consider BSL, July 11

Posted on July 10, 2011 by | Comments Off

On June 13, Oakwood city council considered a vicious dog ordinance that is breed-specific. Although Oakwood is in Ohio, and therefore, all “pit bulls” are automatically considered “vicious” dogs per state law, the ordinance proposed in Oakwood contains breed-specific language. Therefore, even if Ohio state law is repealed, Oakwood would still consider “pit bulls” (including Bull Terriers) to be “vicious” dogs.

Per the mayor, the council will consider the proposed ordinance during the July 11 city council meeting at the City Building at 30 Park Avenue. A work session before the meeting begins at 6:00 PM. The meeting begins at 7:30 PM. The work session and the council meeting are both open to the public.

You may read the full text of the proposed ordinance here: Oakwood dog ordinance

Please contact Oakwood city council and ask them to remove the breed-specific language from the proposed ordinance. (Click the links for each council member to find an online contact form) http://www.ci.oakwood.oh.us/index.php?option=com_contact&catid=46&Itemid=3

All alerts for Oakwood: http://stopbsl.com/?s=oakwood

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Posted in BSL Proposed, Ohio

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