Standing Firm on Pit Bull Ban: Lakewood Councilman Brian Powers Responds to Critics

Stands by Pit Bull Ban
Lakewood, OH - Councilman Brian Powers responds to non-constituent critics about Lakewood City Council's efforts to make their city a safer place to live.


When I agreed to serve as a member of Lakewood City Council, I vowed to strive to do the right thing for our residents, not necessarily the popular thing. Since introducing legislation to ban those dogs know as “pit bulls” from Lakewood, all members of Council have been deluged with e-mails arguing against such a ban, mostly from out-of-towners. Sadly, the pit bull ban is receiving an inordinate amount of public attention, even though it is but a small part of the broader effort by the Mayor and Council to make Lakewood a safer place to live. We should be focusing on the recent decision to add four new full-time and ten part-time police officers, but we are instead flooded with advice from out-of-state special interest groups about dogs.

In the past few weeks, I’ve personally been called a “hysterical demagogue” by out-of-town blogger Charles Brettell and have been labeled a “canine racist” by pit bull enthusiasts. Let’s get this straight: dogs are dogs and people are people. It is absurd to say that a pit bull ban is a form of racism. To compare human racial minorities to a breed of dogs is an insult and a trivialization of the very real issue of human racism.

Pit bull rescue groups are pledged to the protect pit bulls, so it is understandable that they do not like our proposed law. But members of Council have vowed to protect the people of Lakewood. Pit Bull Rescue Central argues that I have taken language out of context from their Web site. Yet, I quoted full sentences and whole paragraphs. The fact is that even pit bull supporters cannot deny that these dogs are different, as a result of very specific breeding practices. Here is further material from Pit Bull Rescue Central:

"It is unfortunate that one of the original purposes of the APBT [American Pit Bull Terrier] was (and still is) dog-to-dog combat, but it's a fact that can't be denied or ignored. It's important that every potential pit bull owner understand the selective breeding process that took place to make the dogs of today. …The American Pit Bull Terrier has been ‘selectively’ bred for hundreds of years to fight other dogs. This is the sad ‘work’ these dogs were created for. In the same way that Labradors were bred to retrieve birds, APBTs were bred to face other dogs in mortal combat. Even in dogs that are not recently bred from fighting lines, the urge to fight can arise at any time. Not to strongly emphasize this fact would be negligent….Training may help the owner control his/her dog, but it will not eliminate the risk for fights. In the case of a fighting breed, the urge to fight is often the result of genetic heritage. Remember that there is no magic cure to remove an inherited behavior selectively bred into a dog." (from PBRC.net)

Thus, it is clear that pit bulls ARE very different from other dogs. Some pit bull enthusiasts point to studies allegedly showing that golden retrievers and even poodles have a worse “temperament” than pit bulls. But the fact remains that, between 1982 and 2006, poodles killed no humans, while one person was strangled when a golden retriever accidentally tugged on a scarf, but pit bulls accounted for at least 110 deaths.

For the above reasons and for safety of our residents, I remain in support of the proposed “pit bull” ban.

Respectfully,
Brian Powers

Related articles:
06/01/08: Pit Bull Ban FAQ by Councilman Brian Powers

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Aurora Fighting Breed Ban Will be Challenged in Federal Court

aurora fighting breed ban court challenge
United States District Court for the District of Colorado on 19th Street in Denver.

Now The Ugly Guys Show Up
Aurora, CO - The American Canine Foundation (ACF), a Washington-based pit bull special interest group, frequently threatens and pursues lawsuits to intimidate city officials who have passed breed-specific laws. The group seems to be in litigation on a constant basis, but has little to show for their efforts. Likely the most significant case they "assisted on" is the Ohio, Tellings case, which recently got overturned by the Ohio State Supreme Court.

The American Canine Foundation is unliked even by some devoted pit bull lovers -- the very people they represent. If one types "American Canine Foundation" or "ACF," into various pit bull forums, you can find deep-seated resentment in the threads. Currently, the group is down in Aurora, suing again and wasting more taxpayers dollars. One would think that every angle of "breed-specific" law that could be litigated in Colorado already has.

The lawsuit, filed by the American Canine Foundation, alleges there is no statistical proof that the ban enhances public safety.

"There's no evidence at all that any breed of dog is more vicious than any other breed of dog," said Sonya Dias, who filed a similar suit against the city of Denver. Her suit was later dismissed.

Aurora city attorney Charlie Richardson said the city is not taking this lightly.

He said Aurora looks forward to proving, through proper evidence and testimony, that pit bulls represent an enhanced threat. - The Denver Channel, May 30, 2008

In a partial summary judgment order dated May 29, Colorado District Judge Wiley Daniel responded to five separate claims filed against the city of Aurora by Florence Vianzon and the American Canine Foundation. In the order, Daniel found reason to hear arguments for two of the plaintiffs' five claims against the city, specifically that the current ban does not have a legitimate purpose and that it fails to properly compensate an owner for "property seized."

Daniel denied hearing several claims, including that the current ban is overly vague and that it violates state commerce laws and doctrines of separation of state powers (claims Colorado courts have already addressed). The aspects he did choose to hear, however, will be interesting to follow. Daniels wrote that while other cities with similar bans have had to show a direct relationship between pit bulls and a threat to public safety, Aurora relied largely on legal precedents.

City attorney Charlie Richardson said that this week's decision by Daniels will determine the city's strategy in August. He had hoped the whole case would be dismissed, but said, "The stage is now set to have that trial proceed. I think it's only one issue -- will the city prove that pit bulls represent an enhanced threat to public safety." While DogsBite.org is not a legal eagle, it seems there ought to be a precedent in public safety that allows laws to be developed to prevent future tragedies.

Related articles:
02/26/08: United States Supreme Court Leaves Intact Ohio Supreme Court’s Ruling

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2008 Dog Bite Fatality: 7-Year Old Boy Attacked and Killed by Pit Bulls in Breckenridge, Texas

Owners Charged under Texas Felony Dog Attack Statute

stephens county boy killed by pit bulls
Tanner Joshua Monk, 7-years old, was killed by four pit bulls belonging to his neighbors.

Owners Receive 7 Years
UPDATE 10/11/08: Both defendants were sentenced to seven years in prison in connection to the mauling death 7-year old Tanner Joshua Monk. Crystal Watson sobbed, "I wish I could go back to that day; I wished I’d never left." Jack Wayne Smith said, "I would trade places with that young boy anytime or with any child." His statement is hardly believable and is at odds to the day of the fatal attack, when deputies testified that Smith cared more about his dead dogs than the dead boy.

The sentence resulted from a Texas law passed in September 2007. Watson and Smith are the first to be tried under this law, which holds dog owners to a higher degree of responsibility for their animals.

The law mandates dog owners face increased jail time when their animals cause injury or death. - C.T. Hunnewell, Times Record News, October 11, 2008

10/10/08: Swift Justice in Texas
The Young County jury deliberated less than 1 hour before returning a guilty verdict in a precedent-setting trial of the owners of four pit bulls that attacked and killed 7-year old Tanner Monk of Breckenridge. Defendants Jack Smith and Crystal Watson of Breckenridge were found guilty of attack by dog resulting in death. The crime is a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. The punishment phase begins the morning.

10/09/08: Trial Testimony Ends
Both sides rested after a second day of testimony in the state’s first trial under Lillian's Law. Witnesses included Eastland, Texas, residents who were familiar with one of the four pit bulls that fatally attacked the 7-year old boy. Earl Trout recalled how one dog involved in the attack, name Sun, once knocked him down. Though the dog didn’t bite him, the fall required stitches on one arm. "The good Lord was with me," Trout said during testimony. "I crawled 35 feet to get away."

Leon Lake resident, Yvonne Blankenship, testified how the same dog had attacked other dogs and killed her Jack Russell terrier. Other witnesses included forensic experts from the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office. Roger Metcalfe, a forensic dentist, called the attack of the boy "one of the most awful things I’d ever seen in an autopsy." He described the horrible wounds on Tanner's head, neck and shoulders, as well as the claw marks and scratches found all over his body.

The first authorities to arrive on scene were Stephens County Sheriff’s deputies Caleb Hodges and Adam Babylon. They quickly shot two aggressive pit bulls. The deputies testified that the defendant, Jack Wayne Smith, approached the scene from a nearby driveway accompanied by two pit bulls and asked the deputies why they had just killed two his pit bulls. "We told him there was small boy who’d been killed," Hodges testified. "He said 'Oh,' and walked back to his house."

10/07/08: Jury Seated in Fatal Attack Trial
A 10-woman, two-man jury has been seated, and testimony has begun in the fatal dog mauling trial of Tanner Joshua Monk. Though the case originated in Stephens County, it was moved to Young County as a result of pretrial publicity. Due to the widespread interest in the case, Young County Sheriff Bryan Walls said his office, in conjunction with the Stephens County Sheriff's Office, would be providing tight security during the trial. The criminal trial is expected to last all week.

10/04/08: Last Ditch Efforts By Defense
Breckenridge, TX -The trial of a Breckenridge couple accused of owning two pit bulls that brutally killed 7-year old Tanner Joshua Monk back in May will continue as planned, despite efforts by their defense attorney to delay proceedings. Jury selection will begin Monday for Jack Smith, 45, and Crystal Watson, 27, who are each charged with felony dog attack resulting in death. Monk was found dead on May 18 on County Road 415, about 50 to 70 west of where the pit bulls were kept.

5/19/08: Boy Killed by Multiple Pit Bulls
Breckenridge, TX - A 7-year old boy is dead after being attacked by dogs, according to the Stephens County Sheriff's Office. A woman driving her car saw Tanner Joshua Monk lying next to the road near Hubbard Lake with two pit bull hovering nearby. She stopped to check on the child, Sheriff Jim Reeves said. When she exited her car, the dogs became aggressive, he said. The dogs were also aggressive toward the two responding deputies; they shot and killed both dogs.

The deputies found the boy dead, Reeves said. The two shot pit bulls, along with two other pit bulls belonging to the same home, were taken into custody by authorities. The dogs belonged to a neighbor of the child's family, according to Reeves. An autopsy will be conducted on the boy and tests will be performed on the seized dogs. Reeves said evidence will be presented to a grand jury following the autopsy and tests. There were no witnesses to the attack. Tanner died all alone.

Related articles:
01/01/09: New Dog-Mauling Statute Tested by Stephen Bristow
06/19/08: 2008 Dog Bite Fatality: Boy Killed by Family Pit Bull in Weslaco, Texas
11/07/07: 2007 Dog Bite Fatality: Boy Killed by His Grandmother's Pit Bull in Killeen

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Fatal Dog Mauling of Julian Slack Brings Back Bad Memories

Lejeune's Policy Questioned
Camp Lejeune, NC - DogsBite.org pointed out the policy issue last week. In 2007, the Marine Corps was sued for 5 million dollars after a dog viciously attacked a young girl living at Camp Lejeune in 2005. The organization has done nothing in this 3-year time frame to enact policy to prevent a future tragedy. Likely as a result, Lejeune is now faced with a fatality.

Last week, 3-year-old Julian Slack bled to death on the way to the hospital after being bitten multiple times by a pit bull. The boy was at home with a babysitter when a civilian friend of the family brought the pit bull to the house. 1st Lt. Philip Klay, spokesman for 2nd Marine Logistics Group, said they are still investigating the incident.

Amy Gaston -- who filed the $5 million lawsuit against the Marine Corps -- said that hearing about the recent pit bull attack brought her back to when her daughter was nearly killed. "I can't believe it is happening again," she said. Her daughter was attacked by a rottweiler that got loose from a nearby fenced yard. She was bitten on the face and neck and half her ear was torn off.

Her daughter has since been through two and a half years of therapy. She is doing better now, but Gaston fears she will never be the same. The girl has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and still has nightmares, according to the civil suit. Gaston now lives in Upper Marlboro, MD, and filed the lawsuit in U.S. district court there.

Washington, D.C., attorney David Sheldon represents Gaston. He said that more North Carolina landlords are being held accountable for what happens on their rental property. The Marine Corps, he said, is basically a landlord for housing on Camp Lejeune. Already, two vicious breeds on the same military base have attacked two children in a short period of time.

"It makes you shake your head in confusion as to why the base hasn't taken steps to stop this," Sheldon said.

Base commanding officer, Col. Richard P. Flatau Jr., has now gathered a team of advisers to look at possible changes to the base's animal policy. The team's task is to "review existing policies for domestic animals on base, analyze historic records, and review military and civilian precedents." In doing so, they will find that many U.S. military bases and cities ban vicious breeds already.

We hope that while they "analyze historic records" another child's life is not lost or ruined forever.

Related articles:
05/15/08: 2008 Fatality: Child Dies In Pit Bull Attack At Camp Lejeune
12/08/07: Rottweiler Attack Prompts Military Base to Revisit Pet Policies