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Sub. H. B. No. 71 As Reported by the Senate Agriculture CommitteeAs Reported by the Senate Agriculture Committee
127th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2007-2008 |
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Cosponsors:
Representatives McGregor, J., Setzer, Brown, Hagan, J., Seitz, Wagoner, Wolpert, Aslanides, Distel, Batchelder, Blessing, Boyd, Chandler, Coley, Domenick, Evans, Flowers, Foley, Hagan, R., Hite, Hottinger, Hughes, Letson, Luckie, Mallory, Otterman, Schneider, Stebelton, Stewart, D., Webster, Williams, S., Yuko
Senators Faber, Wilson, Mumper, Grendell
A BILL
To amend sections 955.28 and 959.16, to enact new
section
959.132 and section 959.161, and to
repeal section
959.132 of the
Revised Code to
provide for the
seizure,
impoundment, and
disposition of dogs involved in
dogfighting; to
revise
requirements and
procedures
governing
the
seizure, impoundment,
and
disposition of
companion animals that are the
subject of abuse
or neglect; and to allow a law enforcement officer
to kill a dog that attacks a police
dog.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 955.28 and 959.16 be amended and
new section
959.132 and section 959.161 of the Revised Code be
enacted to read
as follows:
Sec. 955.28. (A) Subject to divisions (A)(2) and (3) of
section 955.261 of the Revised Code, a dog that is chasing or
approaching in a menacing fashion or apparent attitude of attack,
that attempts to bite or otherwise endanger, or that kills or
injures a person or a dog that chases, threatens, harasses,
injures, or kills
livestock, poultry, other domestic animal, or
other animal, that
is the property of another person, except a cat
or another dog,
can be killed at the time of that chasing,
threatening, harassment,
approaching, attempt,
killing, or
injury. If, in attempting to
kill such a dog, a
person wounds it,
he the person is not liable
to prosecution
under the penal
laws
which that punish cruelty to
animals.
Nothing in this section
precludes a law enforcement officer from
killing a dog that
attacks a police dog as defined in section
2921.321 of the
Revised Code.
(B) The owner, keeper, or harborer of a dog is liable in
damages for any injury, death, or loss to person or property that
is caused by the dog, unless the injury, death, or loss was
caused
to the person or property of an individual who, at the
time, was
committing or attempting to commit a criminal trespass or other
another
criminal
offense other than a minor misdemeanor on the
property of the owner, keeper, or
harborer, or was
committing or
attempting to commit a criminal
offense other than a minor
misdemeanor against any
person, or was teasing, tormenting, or
abusing the dog on the
owner's, keeper's, or harborer's property.
Additionally, the owner, keeper, or harborer of a dog is liable in
damages for any injury, death, or loss to person or property that
is caused by the dog if the injury, death, or loss was caused to
the person or property of an individual who, at the time of the
injury, death, or loss, was on the property of the owner, keeper,
or harborer solely for the purpose of engaging in door-to-door
sales or other solicitations regardless of whether the individual
was in compliance with any requirement to obtain a permit or
license to engage in door-to-door sales or other solicitations
established by the political subdivision in which the property of
the owner, keeper, or harborer is located, provided that the person
was not committing a criminal offense other than a minor
misdemeanor or was not teasing, tormenting, or abusing the dog.
Sec. 959.132. (A) As used in this section:
(1) "Companion animal" has the same meaning as in section
959.131 of the Revised Code.
(2) "Impounding agency" means a county humane society
organized under section 1717.05 of the Revised Code, an animal
shelter, or a law enforcement agency that has impounded a
companion animal
in accordance with this section.
(3) "Offense" means a violation of section 959.131 of the
Revised Code or an attempt, in violation of section 2923.02 of the
Revised Code, to violate section 959.131 of the Revised Code.
(4) "Officer" means any law enforcement officer, agent of a
county humane society, or other person appointed to act as an
animal control officer for a municipal corporation or township in
accordance with state law, an ordinance, or a resolution.
(B)
An officer may seize and cause to be impounded at an
impounding agency a companion animal that the officer has
probable cause
to believe is the subject of an offense. No
officer or impounding agency shall impound a companion animal that
is the subject of an offense in a
shelter owned, operated, or
controlled by a board of county
commissioners pursuant to Chapter
955. of the Revised Code unless
the board, by resolution,
authorizes the impoundment of such a companion
animal in a
shelter owned, operated, or controlled by that board
and has
executed, in the case when the officer is other than a dog
warden
or assistant dog warden, a contract specifying the terms
and
conditions of the impoundment.
(C) The officer shall give written notice of the seizure and
impoundment to the owner, keeper,
or
harborer of the companion
animal that was seized and impounded. If the officer is unable to
give the notice to the owner, keeper, or harborer of the companion
animal, the officer shall post the notice on the door of the
residence or in another conspicuous place on the premises at which
the companion animal was seized. The notice shall include a
statement that a hearing will be held not later than ten days
after the notice is provided or at the next available court date
to determine whether the officer had probable cause to seize the
companion animal and, if applicable, to determine the amount of a
bond or cash deposit that is needed to provide for the companion
animal's care and keeping for not less than thirty days beginning
on the date on which the companion animal was impounded.
(D) A companion animal that is seized under this section may
be
humanely destroyed immediately or at any time during
impoundment
if a licensed veterinarian determines it to be
necessary because
the companion animal is suffering.
(E)(1) Not later than ten days after notice is provided or at
the next available court date, the court shall hold a hearing to
determine whether the officer impounding a companion animal had
probable cause to seize the companion animal. If the court
determines that probable cause exists, the court shall determine
the amount of a bond or cash deposit that is needed to provide for
the companion animal's care and keeping for not less than thirty
days beginning on the date on which the companion animal was
impounded.
(2) If the court determines that probable cause does not
exist, the court immediately shall order the impounding agency to
return the companion animal to its owner if possible. If the
companion animal cannot be
returned because it has died as a
result of neglect or other
misconduct by the impounding agency or
if the companion animal is
injured
as a result of neglect or
other misconduct by the
impounding
agency, the court
shall
order the
impounding agency
to pay the
owner an amount
determined by the
court to be equal
to the
reasonable market
value
of the
companion animal at the
time that
it was
impounded plus statutory
interest as defined in
section
1343.03
of the Revised Code from
the date of the
impoundment or
an
amount determined by the court to be equal to
the reasonable
cost of treatment of the injury to the companion
animal, as
applicable. The
requirement established in
division
(E)(2) of
this section
regarding the payment of
the reasonable market
value of
the
companion
animal shall not
apply in the case of a
dog that,
in
violation
of
section 955.01
of the Revised Code,
was not
registered at
the time
it was seized
and impounded.
(3) If the court determines that probable cause exists and
determines the amount of a bond or cash deposit, the case shall
continue and the owner shall post a bond or cash deposit to
provide for the companion animal's care and keeping for not less
than thirty days beginning on the date on which the companion
animal was impounded. The owner may renew a bond or cash deposit
by posting, not later than ten days following the expiration of
the period for which a previous bond or cash deposit was posted, a
new bond or cash deposit in an amount that the court, in
consultation with the impounding agency, determines is sufficient
to provide for the companion animal's care and keeping for not
less than thirty days beginning on the date on which the previous
period expired. If no bond or cash deposit is posted or if a bond
or cash deposit expires and is not renewed, the impounding agency
may determine the disposition of the companion animal unless the
court issues an order that specifies otherwise.
(F) If a person is convicted of committing an offense, the
court may impose the
following additional penalties against the
person:
(1) A requirement that the person pay for the costs incurred
by the impounding agency in caring for a companion animal involved
in the
applicable offense, provided that the costs were incurred
during
the companion animal's impoundment. A bond or
cash
deposit posted under this section may be applied to the costs.
(2) An order permanently terminating the person's right to
possession, title, custody, or care of the companion animal that
was
involved in the offense. If the court issues such an order,
the
court shall order the disposition of the companion animal.
(G) If a person is found not guilty of committing an offense,
the court
immediately shall order the impounding agency to return
the companion animal
to its owner if possible and to return the
entire amount of any
bond or cash deposit posted under division
(E) of this section. If
the companion animal cannot be returned
because it has died as a result of neglect or other misconduct by
the impounding agency or if the companion animal is injured as a
result of neglect or other misconduct by the impounding agency,
the court shall order the
impounding
agency to pay the owner an
amount determined by the
court to be
equal to the reasonable
market value of the companion animal at
the time that it was
impounded plus statutory interest as defined
in section 1343.03
of the Revised Code from the date of the
impoundment or an amount
determined by the court to be equal to the reasonable cost of
treatment of the injury to the companion animal, as applicable.
The
requirements established in this division
regarding the
return of
a bond or cash deposit and the payment of
the
reasonable market
value of the companion animal shall not
apply
in the
case of a
dog that, in violation of section 955.01
of
the Revised
Code, was
not registered at the time it was
seized
and impounded.
(H) If charges are filed under section 959.131 of the
Revised
Code against the
custodian or caretaker of a
companion
animal, but
the
companion animal that is
the subject of
the
charges is not
impounded, the court in which the charges
are
pending may order
the
owner or person having custody of the
companion animal to
provide
to the companion animal the
necessities described in
division
(C)(2) of section
959.131 of the Revised Code
until the
final disposition of the
charges.
If the court issues an
order of
that nature, the court
also may
authorize an officer or
another
person
to visit the place
where
the companion animal is
being
kept, at the times and under
the
conditions that the court
may
set, to
determine whether the
companion animal is
receiving
those
necessities and to remove and
impound the companion
animal
if the
companion animal
is not
receiving those necessities.
Sec. 959.16. (A) No person shall knowingly do any of the
following:
(1) Promote, engage in, or be employed at dogfighting;
(2) Receive money or anything else of value for the admission
of another person to a dogfighting event or a
place kept for
dogfighting;
(3) Sell, purchase, possess, or train a dog for
dogfighting;
(4) Use, train, or possess a dog for seizing, detaining, or
maltreating a domestic animal;
(5) Purchase a ticket of Pay money or give anything else of
value in exchange for admission to or be present at a
dogfight;
(6) Witness a dogfight if it is presented as a public
spectacle.
(B) The department of agriculture may investigate
complaints
and follow up rumors of dogfighting activities and may
report any
information so gathered to an appropriate prosecutor
or law
enforcement agency.
(C) Any peace officer, as defined in section 2935.01 of
the
Revised Code, shall confiscate may seize and cause to be impounded
in accordance with section 959.161 of the Revised Code any dogs
that have been, are,
or
are intended to be used in dogfighting
and. In addition, any peace officer shall confiscate any equipment
or
devices used in training such dogs or as part of dogfights.
Sec. 959.161. (A) As used in this section:
(1) "Fighting dog" means a dog that a peace officer has
probable cause to
believe has been, is, or is intended to be
used in dogfighting in
violation of section 959.16 of the Revised
Code.
(2) "Impounding entity" means the entity that has possession
of an impounded fighting dog during its impoundment.
(3) "Peace officer" has the same meaning as in section
2935.01 of the Revised Code.
(4) "Violation" means a violation of section 959.16
of the
Revised Code or an attempt, in violation of section
2923.02 of
the Revised Code, to violate section 959.16 of the Revised Code.
(B) A peace officer may seize and cause to be impounded with
an impounding entity a fighting dog that the peace officer has
probable cause to believe is involved in a violation.
(C) A fighting dog that is seized under this section may
be
humanely destroyed under either of the following circumstances:
(1) During its seizure if it is necessary because the
fighting dog is suffering;
(2) At any time during its impoundment if a licensed
veterinarian determines it to be necessary because the fighting
dog is suffering.
(D) Procedures, requirements, and other provisions that are
established in divisions (C), (E), (F), and (G) of section
959.132 of the Revised Code shall apply to the seizure,
impoundment, and disposition of a fighting dog. For purposes of
that application, references in those divisions of section 959.132
of the Revised Code to "companion animal," "impounding agency,"
"officer," and "offense" shall be deemed to be replaced,
respectively, with references to "fighting dog," "impounding
entity," "peace officer," and "violation" as defined in this
section. Likewise, references in those divisions of section
959.132 of the Revised Code to "section 959.131 of the Revised
Code" shall be deemed to be replaced with references
to section
959.16 of the Revised Code, as applicable.
Section 2. That existing sections 955.28 and 959.16 and
section 959.132
of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.
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