Benjamin Cobb, age 4, was killed in October 2019 by a violent pit bull that his mother brought home to help out a friend. Brandi Halterman had asked the owner if the dog was safe around children. The pit bull owner did not disclose that the dog had previously showed signs of aggression and had allegedly bitten people and animals. In fact, the owner said that the dog had never bitten a human before. Halterman has since learned that there is NO law in Michigan requiring the disclosure of a dog’s bite history and she wants to change that.
In Michigan, a dog bite/attack can result in a serious felony charge for the dog’s owner. Felony charges are the highest level criminal charges. When the death of a person occurs, under some circumstances the prosecution could even seek murder charges.
Pursuant to MCL 287.323(1) The owner of an animal that meets the definition of a dangerous animal that causes the death of a person is guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
Pursuant to MCL 287.323(2) if an animal that meets the definition of a dangerous animal attacks a person and causes serious injury other than death, the owner of the animal is guilty of a felony, punishable by imprisonment for not more than 4 years, a fine of not less than $2,000.00, or community service work for not less than 240 hours, or a combination of these penalties.
What constitutes a “dangerous animal”. According to MCL 287.321, a “dangerous animal” means a dog or other animal that bites or attacks a person, or a dog that bites or attacks and causes serious injury or death to another dog while the other dog is on the property or under the control of its owner. However, a dangerous animal does not include any of the following: (i) an animal that bites or attacks a person who is knowingly trespassing on the property of the animal’s owner. (ii) An animal that bites or attacks a person who provokes or torments the animal. (iii) An animal that is responding in a manner that an ordinary and reasonable person would conclude was designated to protect a person if that person is engaged in a lawful activity or is the subject of an assault.
Animals shelters and rescues used to be a filter for public safety, but because of the “No Kill” movement, humane groups are desperate to find homes for dogs, including dangerous dogs. The majority of shelter dogs are pit bulls or mixes thereof, and it is common practice for animal shelters to transfer the dogs to other shelters or rescues and in the process “losing” the paper trail which includes a dog’s bite history. This very deceptive practice is resulting in an epidemic of serious injury and death to human beings and beloved pets. We need to enact a mandatory disclosure law to protect public safety.
Other states have done that. After serious dog attack injuries and the death of Margaret Colvin, Virginia changed their dangerous dog law to include mandatory public disclosure of a dog’s bite history.
VIRGINIA LAW:
3.2-6509.1. Disclosure of animal bite history; penalties.
A. Any custodian of a releasing agency, animal control officer, law-enforcement officer, or humane investigator, upon taking custody of any dog or cat in the course of his official duties, shall ask and document whether, if known, the dog or cat has bitten a person or other animal and the circumstances and date of such bite. Any custodian of a releasing agency, animal control officer, law-enforcement officer, or humane investigator, upon release of a dog or cat for (i) adoption, (ii) return to a rightful owner, or (iii) transfer to another agency, shall disclose, if known, that the dog or cat has bitten a person or other animal and the circumstances and date of such bite.
B. Violation of this section is a Class 3 misdemeanor.
CALIFORNIA Law:
California recently enacted a mandatory dog bite disclosure law which protects public safety. Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a dog bite bill that is so common sense, one wonders why it wasn’t enacted years ago.
Until now, shelters and dog rescues in CA have not been required to disclose a dog’s bite history, even if they were aware that it had bitten a person in the past — such disclosure has been strictly voluntary, and at the rescue’s discretion. This lack of disclosure has, to an extent, benefitted the mission of dog rescues: to find homes for dogs, even the aggressive ones. While that is certainly a laudable ideal — a great number of rescue dogs are being adopted by families, and it’s appropriate for people to know who exactly they are bringing home.
TEXT OF AB 588 (Chapter 430):
This bill would require an animal shelter, defined to include a public animal control agency or shelter, society for the prevention of cruelty to animals shelter, humane society shelter, or rescue group, that knows, to the best of the knowledge of the shelter or rescue group, that a dog, at the age of 4 months or older, bit a person and broke that person’s skin, thus requiring a state-mandated bite quarantine, before selling, giving away, or otherwise releasing the dog, to disclose in writing to the person to whom the dog is released the dog’s bite history and the circumstances related to the bite.
The bill would require the animal shelter or rescue group to obtain a signed acknowledgment from the person to whom the dog is sold, given away, or transferred that the person has been provided this information about the dog.
PENALTIES UNDER AB 588
A violation of any part of the new law would result in a civil fine not to exceed $500, imposed by the city or county in which the animal shelter or rescue group is located.
The proceeds of that fine would be paid to either the local public animal control agency or shelter or the city or county, depending on whether the violation was committed by a private or public entity.
It’s time for Michigan to require mandatory disclosure and acknowledgement of dogs bite histories before dogs are acquired from animal shelters, rescue groups or private entities in an effort to protect public safety and promote transparency so people can make informed decisions. Protecting public safety should be the priority of our legislators and our laws should reflect that priority. Michigan has seen too many innocent victims. Enough is enough.
