Denver and Aurora, CO: Disabled vets file discrimination suit due to “pit bull” bans

April 1, 2010 by stopbslcom 3 Comments

Update 4/4: Great article on the importance of service dogs to veterans: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/04/us/04dogs.html

Note that one veteran’s dog was seized after being misidentified as a “pit bull.”

http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2010/03/pit_bull_ban_disabled_vietnam.php

Pit bull ban: Disabled Vietnam, Gulf War vets sue Denver and Aurora for discriminating against their service dogs

By J. David McSwane, Wednesday, Mar. 31 2010 @ 3:46PM

A federal class-action suit involving disabled Coloradans — two war veterans with psychological disorders — and their service animals was filed Tuesday against Aurora, the City and County of Denver and its head of Animal Control.

The two veterans, and another disabled woman from out of state, say Denver’s controversial pit-bull ban doesn’t make exceptions for service dogs and their owners and is therefore a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The issue of service dogs has been in the news of late. Yesterday, we told you about a Colorado Springs attorney who was ordered to pay $50,000 for purportedly violating the Americans with Disabilities Act when he barred a disabled woman and her service dog from entering his office because he was worried the dog might soil his new carpet. He refutes this assertion and claims to have settled for “economic reasons.”

But pit bulls add a new twist to the service-dog issue.

The suit’s plaintiffs, represented by Wheat Ridge-based Animal Law Center, are asking for exemptions in the controversial pit bull ban for disabled citizens and more than $75,000 in damages from the municipalities and the head of Denver Animal Control, Doug Kelly, who has taken heat over the years for his support of the ban.

The lead plaintiff on the suit, Allen Grider, is a 59-year-old Vietnam veteran who says he needs his dog, seven-year-old “Precious,” to help him manage his severe post traumatic stress disorder. But in November, Aurora Police seized Precious, who Griber says isn’t even a pit bull, under the city’s ban and placed her in a shelter.

“I am a combat marine, so if you fuck with me too much, you’ll be looking down the barrel of a marine,” he says. “When I come in and I have PTSD and I’m mad about something, she won’t leave me alone — she’ll calm me down until she can climb in my lap and give me kisses.”

“I’m more the pit bull than she is,” he claims. “I tried to tell them that.”

Precious was kept at the shelter for ten days before being released to Grider’s friend, who lives in another city without a pit bull ban. Calls to Aurora’s Animal Care division and Denver’s Animal Care and Control have not yet been returned. We’ll update this blog if and when they provide comment.

Glenn Belcher, a Gulf War veteran who moved to Denver with his pit bull last year, and Valerie Piltz, a disabled woman staying with her sister in Denver, are also plaintiffs in the suit; both of them actually own pit bulls as service animals.

Precious, who is actually a chocolate lab and boxer mix, was rescued from a shelter to help Grider cope with his condition per a recommendation from a doctor. Her main duties include going ahead of him into rooms to let him know if there are groups of people or warning if someone is at the door of his Aurora home. But Grider says when she was taken away he lost more than his prescribed service dog — he lost his greatest companion.

“They really messed me up. When she wasn’t here, I wasn’t able to sleep, I wasn’t able to do nothing. I had a really hard time,” Grider says. “And that’s just exactly what she is — precious. She never bit nobody, she’s never running wild, she’s not vicious. You come in my house, and she’ll lick you to death before she’ll bite you.”

Grider is pleased that Precious is back home with him now, where tomorrow she’ll celebrate her seventh year in his home. But he says the ordeal has left them both a little wounded. “She’s not the same. I gotta train her again. They messed her up bad,” he says.

Read the lawsuit here.

Filed under Breed Identification, Colorado, Court Cases, Results of BSL Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Lakewood, OH: Lawsuit filed against city due to “pit bull” ban

March 30, 2010 by stopbslcom 1 Comment

Read a copy of the suit filed in Cuyahoga County, Ohio Common Pleas Court: http://www.lovelakewood.com/pdf/dog/100319_pitbull_court.pdf

An excerpt of the case (visit the link for the full post):

http://www.lovelakewood.com/blog/2010/03/30/citys-enforcement-of-pit-bull-ban-draws-lawsuit/

Former Lakewood resident Leonard Shelton alleges that he suffered “economic damages, psychological damages, and other compensatory damages” when the city harassed him about Rosco, his Boston Terrier mix, and forced them both to move out of the city. Shelton is seeking a minimum of $475,000 in damages.

According to Shelton’s complaint, Stewart and Lakewood police officer Kenneth Kulczycki stopped him on the street in April, 2009, and told him his pet was a pit bull and needed to be removed from the city, or else he would face criminal charges.

Shelton, who now lives in Brooklyn, immediately told the city officials his dog was not a pit bull.

Over the course of the next few months, Stewart and unidentified Lakewood police officers repeatedly visited, and stopped him on the street to deliver the same message: Rosco must go.

At one point, Shelton claims, Stewart told him if a DNA test proved his pet wasn’t a pit bull, it could continue to live within the city.

In June, 2009, Shelton provided DNA results that showed Rosco wasn’t a pit bull, but Stewart declined to accept them. Shelton alleges that continued harassment from city officials over the breed issue caused him to move elsewhere.

Shelton’s complaint against the city says its inability to correctly identify the breed of his dog, the harassment, and refusal to accept DNA proof was motivated by “among other things, malice, ill will, discrimination, and bad faith and constitutes violations of [his] constitutional rights.”

Additional posts and info about Leonard Shelton:

http://btoellner.typepad.com/kcdogblog/2009/05/bsl-again-affecting-good-owners.html

http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/leonard-shelton-fought-in-the-marines-for-20-years-now-he-fights-for-sleep/Content?oid=1505838

Filed under Breed Identification, Court Cases, Ohio, Results of BSL Tagged with , , , , , , ,

Camp Pendleton, CA: Implementation procedures for banned dog breeds released

December 29, 2009 by stopbslcom Leave a Comment

http://scoutnewspaper.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1129&Itemid=411

Implementation procedures for banned dog breeds released for Pendleton residents

Written by Lance Cpl. Daniel Boothe, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton
Tuesday, 22 December 2009

Camp Pendleton announced implementation procedures for banned dog breeds today, after receiving approval of a request to extend the waiver period originally mandated by Headquarters Marine Corps.

Marine Corps Order P11000.22 Ch 6, released in August, mandated all installations ban any breed of pit bull, rottweiler or wolf hybrid dog from residing on base. It also prevented visitors from bringing banned breeds on base.

“We are implementing this breed ban because it’s a Marine Corps directed action,” said Joe A. Grabman, assistant services officer, Support Services Division, Provost Marshal’s Office, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. “But Camp Pendleton actively encourages people to have and own pets in base housing.”

Prohibited pets registered with Camp Pendleton’s Domestic Animal Control facility prior to Aug. 11 may be eligible for a waiver to extend their stay until Sept. 30, 2012. Pendleton pet owners seeking a waiver must certify their animal with a nationally recognized temperament test before being eligible.

“The Marine Corps Order’s original deadline gave residents only 60 days to complete breed testing and approval,” said Grabman. “But Camp Pendleton went through a pretty extensive review and waiver process to get that date pushed out until April of 2010 to ensure residents have adequate time to meet all the requirements.”

Residents have until April 1, 2010 to submit for a waiver of prohibited pets or must permanently remove them from the base. Approved pets will be required to wear a breed-ban license tag on their. Disapproved pets owners will be required to remove the animal from base within seven days or relinquish it to Camp Pendleton’s Domestic Animal Control.

Prohibited pets include any animal with a combination of banned-breed ancestry totaling at least 50 percent. Pendleton’s Domestic Animal Control will require majority breed determinations for animals in question at the owner’s expense.

Recent changes to the base’s pet policy also require microchip implants for all dogs and cats residing on base. The microchip will allow Camp Pendleton authorities to better enforce and track pet registration and renewal, and facilitates the return of stray animals to their families.

For additional information, contact Camp Pendleton’s Domestic Animal Control Facility located in building 25132 at (760) 725-8120.

Filed under BSL Passed Tagged with , , , , ,

U.S. Marines: Two of 85 dogs ousted from base for aggressiveness

October 10, 2009 by stopbslcom 1 Comment

Previous info on SC Marine base ban and temperament testing: http://stopbsl.com/?s=marine

Ironically, only 2% of the banned dogs on the base proved, through temperament testing, to actually pose a danger. The other 98% of “aggressive”-type dogs were shown to be safe family pets.

The testing was not performed on non-banned types of dogs. If the goal of the policy is to protect base residents from aggressive dogs, why weren’t the temperament tests done on all residents’ dogs? Why weren’t all aggressive dogs removed from base, and the non-aggressive ones left alone, regardless of their physical appearance?

Contact info for Marine Corps spokesperson
Headquarters Marine Corps 1st Lt. Brian Block
The Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
(703) 614-4309
brian.block@usmc.mil

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/unleashed/2009/10/two-of-85-dogs-ousted-by-aspca-from-south-carolina-marine-bases.html

Two of 85 dogs ousted from South Carolina Marine bases for aggressiveness

October 9, 2009 | 11:26 am

Most of the pit bulls, Rottweilers and canine-wolf mixes assessed at Marine bases in South Carolina this week get to keep their Marine dog tags.

Of 85 dogs from the three breeds checked by experts from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, only two were found to be so aggressive as to pose a danger to Marines and their families. Those two will have to leave base housing. Two others showed aggressive tendencies but one will work with a trainer and another will be neutered.

The Marines have banned the aggressive breeds, because their “dominant traits of aggression present an unreasonable risk to the health and safety of personnel.”

Last year, a 3-year-old boy was fatally bitten by a pit bull at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Owners who can show thorough assessments that their pets present no danger to humans or other pets may get waivers and keep them on bases through 2012.

The pets at the Parris Island Marine Recruit Depot, the Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort and the Beaufort Naval Hospital were assessed by experts from the ASPCA during three days of tests this week.

“We believe breed bans cannot be effective because of this. We found some really great animals and families,” said ASPCA animal behavior expert, Emily Weiss, who said individual assessments are preferable. “We don’t think it’s a breed issue. We think it’s an individual behavior issue, and what we saw at the base verifies that,” said Weiss, who said it was the first time the ASPCA had done such assessments for the Marines.

“We saw a lot of big, macho dogs, but they were safe dogs,” she said.

Capt. Brian Block, a Marine Corps spokesman, noting what happened at Camp Lejeune, said “having one dog who would do that is not an acceptable risk from our point of view.” He said pet owners at other Marine bases can have their dogs assessed by veterinarians.

“If the dog passes the temperament test, that’s great. The dog gets the waiver,” he said. “We think pet ownership is absolutely fantastic for the morale of our Marines and sailors who live on base. But our point was to make a judgment that it’s not worth it to have dogs that are dangerous on base,” he said.

– Associated Press

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Parris Island, S.C. Marine housing: ASPCA to perform behavior evals on banned breeds

September 29, 2009 by stopbslcom 1 Comment

The Marines have banned certain breeds of dogs from base housing (see previous alerts here: http://stopbsl.com/?s=marines). However, some bases are providing waivers for banned dogs already on base.

This base in S.C. will provide waivers to residents whose dogs pass the SAFER behavior test administered by the ASPCA. The residents will be allowed to keep their pets on the base until 2012.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/marines-enlist-help-of-aspca-animal-behavior-experts-62343397.html

Marines Enlist Help of ASPCA Animal Behavior Experts

Team of Experts to Assess Behavior of Dogs in Danger of Breed Ban

NEW YORK, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Several Animal Behavior Experts from the ASPCA(R)( )(The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals(R)) will be in Parris Island, S.C. from October 6-8 to conduct behavior assessments of over 100 dogs living with their pet parents who could potentially be subject to a breed ban in the Tri-Command housing units of the Marines Corp Recruit Depot.

The assessment, known as ASPCA SAFER (Safety Assessment For Evaluation Rehoming), is a seven-item research-based assessment to help identify the likelihood for aggression in individual dogs. SAFER identifies a dog’s comfort level with certain interactions like restraint, touch, reaction to new experiences including movement, sound stimuli, bite inhibition, behavior around food and toys, and arousal level toward novel objects and other dogs.

“Our main goal in this program is to make sure safe dogs and their families are able to stay together,” said Dr. Emily Weiss, Senior Director of Shelter Research and Development for the ASPCA. “There is no ‘pass’ or ‘fail’ with the SAFER assessment, instead, we are simply aiming to identify behavior issues such as certain types of aggression, which often times can be modified or managed.”

Talk of instituting a breed ban began after several incidents involving dog attacks on the base, including one incident in 2008 in which a 3 year-old boy was accidentally killed by a pit bull visiting a family living on base. The Marine Corps previously conducted tests such as the Canine Good Citizen Test and Delta Society Test, which actually evaluate a dog’s obedience and manners and do not correlate with aggression. When looking for a behavior assessment that could specifically identify potentially aggressive behavior in dogs, the Marines enlisted the help of the ASPCA.

By using the SAFER assessment, safe dogs will be given the opportunity for a waiver so they can remain on the base until 2012. The ASPCA is opposed to breed bans — laws that ban specific breeds of dogs or unfairly discriminate against responsible dog guardians based solely on their choice of breed. Such laws also fail to achieve the desired goal of stopping illegal activities such as dog fighting, and breeding and/or training dogs to be aggressive. The ASPCA believes that strict enforcement of laws that ban animal fighting, and breeding and/or training animals to fight, is the proper means to address the problem.

“We’re very excited about the ASPCA coming to Parris Island,” said Army Capt. Jenifer Gustafson, the Officer in Charge of the veterinary clinic on Parris Island. “There was a chance that some pet parents would be forced to give up their dogs or leave housing on the base, so this is a great alternative solution.”

Filed under BSL Passed, Community Initiatives, Results of BSL Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

U.S. Marine Corps: “Pit bulls,” Rottweilers, and wolf hybrids banned from base housing

September 14, 2009 by stopbslcom 7 Comments

Although this article is geared toward Beaufort, SC-area residents, the Marine Corps orders apply to all U.S. Marine Corps base housing.

http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/963856.html

Marine Corps puts certain dog breeds on a short leash when living on base

By PATRICK DONOHUE
pdonohue@beaufortgazette.com
Published Friday, September 11, 2009

Beaufort Marines have until the end of the month to get the Corps’ permission to keep their Rottweilers and pit bulls on base — and then only for another year.

Without the waiver, they have to give up their dogs or move off base, according to a Marine Corps order last month.

The Corps will ban all such dogs from base housing, said Capt. Brian Block, spokesman at Headquarters Marine Corps in Virginia.

Base residents who own pit bulls, Rottweilers, wolf hybrids and mixes of those breeds have until Oct. 11 to obtain a waiver to keep their dogs on base. The dogs must pass “nationally recognized temperament tests,” according to the Aug. 11 order by Maj. Gen. Edward Usher, deputy commandant of installations and logistics. The order affects the owners of at least 130 dogs on Beaufort bases, according to the Beaufort County Animal Shelter.

The waivers expire Sept. 30, 2012. After that, “owners may choose to retain their housing on base but will have to find alternate arrangements for their dog off base,” Block said.

Block said the Corps polled all of its installations about dog attacks and other data late last year, and that survey was used to determine the breeds chosen for the ban. Details of that survey were not available. Restricted breeds without waivers will be allowed on base only when traveling to and from base veterinary clinics, according to the order.

Jennifer King and her husband, Staff Sgt. Jeremy King, a drill instructor at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, said they figured they would have trouble renting off base when they got their Rottweiler, Sampson, more than two years ago.

“We’ve always known that with a Rottweiler it might be hard to rent because the breed’s not allowed some places so we just figured we’d live on base wherever we went, so we weren’t very happy,” Jennifer King said of the new order. “We understand that things happen but our dog is trained and he’s honestly the best dog. He’s like our child, we couldn’t just give him up. It feels a little unfair.”

She took Sampson to Bluffton dog trainer Abby Byrd to put the dog through the temperament test last week, which the dog passed.

Dixie Lanier, spokeswoman for Atlantic Marine Corps Communities, which runs housing developments at Beaufort’s two Marine Corps bases, said the company has not received any complaints about the order.

“AMCC plans to comply with the Marine Corps Order regarding domestic animal control,” Lanier said. “Atlantic Marine Corps Communities understands that not all pets are aggressive, and AMCC remains a pet-friendly community.”

Toni Lytton, county animal shelter director, expects to wind up with some of those dogs.

“The bases say there are 130 of these animals registered with the base vets, and if I had to take in all 130 of those animals at once, I don’t know what I’d do,” Lytton said. “We just don’t have the room. It may have already started. We had a Rottweiler abandoned at the gate that came from one of the bases.”

The shelter currently houses 57 dogs and 44 cats, which Lytton said is near the facility’s capacity.

Byrd, owner of Alpha Dog Training Academy in Bluffton, has received calls from several local Marines about getting their dogs certified under the American Kennel Club’s Good Canine Citizen program, one of the tests accepted by the Corps.

“About a week ago, I started getting calls from a number of panicked dog owners who informed me of the order and wanted to have their dog tested as soon as possible,” said Byrd, who has administered the test to at least six dogs. “This is a pretty onerous requirement when you look at the time limitation and the fact that unless a dog has undergone obedience training in the past, they may not pass the (test).”

Byrd said the test might not be an accurate indicator of a dog’s temperament.

“There’s a difference between temperament and behavior,” Byrd said. “Temperament is how a dog reacts to food, bones, children and other dogs. Behavior is how the dog is controlled by the owner.”

Dogs that pass the test allow a friendly stranger to approach and speak to the handler without showing resentment or shyness, walk through a crowd of at least three people, and come to its handler when called from at least 10 feet away, according to the American Kennel Club.

Kelley Blackston, owner of Beaufort Dog, said her business will offer four, one-hour obedience classes for dogs before they go through the temperament test.

“In order to pass the test, the dog has to react well to loud noises and walk through a crowd of people and a crowd of dogs, and if you have an aggressive dog, as a trainer, you’re going to know,” Blackston said.

Filed under BSL Passed Tagged with , , , , ,

U.S. Marine Corps: Proposal would ban some dogs from base housing

August 3, 2009 by stopbslcom Leave a Comment

Contact 1st Lt. Brian Block, Marine Corps Headquarters:
1st Lt. Brian Block 
Headquarters Marine Corps, The Pentagon, Arlington, Va.
(703) 614-4309
brian.block@usmc.mil

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2009/08/marine_dogs_080209w/

Proposal would ban some dogs from base housing

By Trista Talton – Staff writer
Posted : Monday Aug 3, 2009 8:02:49 EDT

A new Corpswide proposal calls for banning specific dogs and mixes of those breeds from all Marine bases as soon as September.

The draft order, which would be included in the Marine Corps Housing Management Manual, prohibits pit bulls, Rottweilers, canid/wolf hybrids and mixes of those dogs from being on “any Marine Corps installation, at any time.” The only exception would be trips directly to and from a base veterinary office, “with no other stops aboard the installation authorized.”

Base residents who do not comply with the policy may be evicted, according to the proposal.

The draft order appears on a Web site operated by Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, N.C. It marks the latest in an ongoing, passionate debate about potentially dangerous dogs living in base housing areas.

“The rise in ownership of large dog breeds with a predisposition toward aggressive or dangerous behavior, coupled with the increased risk of tragic incidents involving these dogs, necessitates a uniform policy to provide for the health, safety and tranquility of all residents of family housing areas,” the draft order states.

Marine Corps officials declined to elaborate.

“We’re still reviewing the draft order, and until we finalize that, I can’t give you any details on what the final order will look like,” said 1st Lt. Brian Block, a spokesman for Marine Corps headquarters.

The draft order includes a waiver process for Marines who already own one of the prohibited breeds. It would require them to pay for the cost of having their dogs undergo a “nationally recognized” temperament test every two years. Any waivers that Marines may have when — and if — this order is approved will stay valid until Dec. 31, 2011, the end of the grace period, or upon a permanent change of station move.

Waivers will be terminated, the proposal says, if a dog attacks and injures a person or animal. Moreover, it would require base commanders to establish policies that would, upon a complaint, determine whether the dog is dangerous, “and direct expeditious disposition of such animals.”

Historically, Marine installations have dealt with dog issues individually, in some cases issuing tougher restrictions only after tragedy strikes. Camp Lejeune, N.C., for example, implemented a new policy in April, nearly a year after the most recent fatal dog attack aboard a Marine base.

In that incident, a pit bull owned by a man visiting a family in base housing attacked and killed a 3-year-old boy. His death was ruled an accident.

On April 16, Lejeune’s commander, Col. Richard Flatau, implemented the new policy prohibiting from base housing full or mixed breeds of pit bull, Rottweiler, wolf hybrids and “any dog of any breed with traits of aggression as determined by the base veterinarian.”

Owners of those breeds were allowed to keep their dogs provided they installed a chain-link pen 10 feet wide and 6 feet high.

Since that order was implemented, the provost marshal’s office at Lejeune has processed three reported dog bites, two of which took place in base housing, according to base officials. The breeds involved were pit bull/terrier mixes.

At Camp Pendleton, Calif., some housing areas ban pets outright — but none ban certain types of dogs. Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany, Ga., and Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., prohibit pit bulls and mixes of that breed, but not everyone is abiding by the rules.

A newsletter circulated this summer to residents of the Lincoln Housing community at Twentynine Palms says the no-pit-bull order there “has been ignored.”

“If you are not in compliance with this order, you are hereby requested to remove the pit bull from your home,” the letter states.

When contacted, the Lincoln Housing office referred questions about its policy to the combat center’s public affairs shop, which did not return messages as of press time.

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