Carthage, MO: Opportunity to repeal breed ban

A couple of residents of Carthage, MO, have asked the city council to repeal the city’s decades-long ban on “pit bull”-looking dogs.

Please contact city council and the city attorney and provide reasonable, effective breed-neutral ordinances for their consideration. Please also RESPECTFULLY request that they remove the breed-discriminatory language from the current ordinance.

City Council email: council@carthage-mo.gov
City Attorney email: staff@carthage-mo.gov (Attention: Nathaniel Dally)
City of Carthage City Hall, 603 E. 3rd Street, Carthage, MO 64836
Phone (417) 358-5940

Residents seek changes to pitbull ordinance

CARTHAGE, Mo. — […] Chris Smith, who recently moved to Carthage, and Kevin Wheeler, who said he may be moving to Carthage, both came to the Carthage City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Monday with that message, asking that the city revisit the nearly-20-year-old pitt bull ban. […]

Carthage’s ordinance specifically bans bull terriers, Staffordshire bull terriers, American pit bulls, the American Staffordshire terrier and dogs of a mixed breed or of other breeds than those listed or mixed breed known as pit bulls, pit bulldogs or pit bull terriers.

It also bans any dog that “has the appearance and characteristics of being predominantly of the breeds of bull terrier, Staffordshire terrier, any other breed commonly known as pit bulldogs or pit bull terriers or a combination of any of these breeds,” according to the ordinance.[…]

Carthage Police Chief Greg Dagnan informed the committee that he would oppose changing the ordinance.

[…] Public Safety Committee Chairman Dan Rife referred the ordinance to City Attorney Nate Dally and asked that he research the ordinances in other communities.

Rife said he expected to revisit the ordinance at the next Public Safety Committee meeting slated for 6:30 p.m. Monday, April 16 at the Carthage Police Department.

Full article retrieved 3/22/12 from http://www.carthagepress.com/news/x394115394/Residents-seek-changes-to-pitbull-ordinance