The Albany City Commissioners are looking into changes to the city’s dangerous dog laws.
A citizens advisory committee has been approved to investigate the issue and make a recommendation to the Commissioners. The city Attorney has already began work on an ordinance that would single out pit bulls by requiring special registration, containment regulations, insurance and other restrictions that have yet to be named. At least one Commissioner, Tommie Postell, has spoken openly in opposition to singling out dogs based on breed.
There seems to be a lot of media bias at play here. One Commissioner Robert Marietta said in a recent article, “That is a breed that has a proven propensity to bite. We haven’t seen a whole lot of it around here, but there are news items from all over the country of little kids being mauled by pit bulls.”
The city’s current ordinance categorizes a “dangerous dog” as one that has bitten someone or caused an injury. The current city ordinance (Part 2, Chapter 10) is a rather good one that offers stiff penalties and very clearly outlines the responsibilities and legal rights of those in the community. This is probably one reason why Albany has not had an overwhelming issue in the community, though there is a very real possibility that they are not enforcing the laws. If there is any issue, it is not a failure of the law, which is quite comprehensive, but one of enforcement.
There are no dates at this time and since this is still in the discussion and drafting stage it is extremely important to reach out to city officials to politely offer evidence of the failure of breed discriminatory laws and breed neutral alternatives to help strengthen any areas officials feel are lacking in the law.
Commissioners e-mail information:
Mayor Dorothy Hubbard: dhubbard@albany.ga.us
Commissioner Jon Howard: jhoward@albany.ga.us
Commissioner Ivy Hines: ihines@albany.ga.us
Commissioner Christopher Pike: cpike@albany.ga.us
Commissioner Roger Marietta: rmarietta@albany.ga.us
Commissioner Bob Langstaff: bob@langstafflaw.com
Commissioner Tommie Postell: tpostell@albany.ga.us
Fred M. Kray
krisdiaz9
Stop BSL 