Joliet - The City Council Land Use and Legislative Committee continues to work on a vicious dog ordinance. And the basics are already in place.
Joliet City Attorney Marty Shannahan presented a proposal to the committee Tuesday night. And while some fine-tuning is still needed when it comes to verbiage and enforcement, committee member Jan Quillman says the idea of taking extreme last resort action such as euthanization is in there; when it’s a dog that has been determined to cause servere injury or even death to another animal or a person. This would happen after three major incidents.Meanwhile, if there is a first incident, there would be an official dog registration, where neighbors moving in could see if there are dangerous dogs nearby. But Quillman points out that the dog owner would be able to appeal the incidents to a hearing officer.
Another important thing, Quillman says, would be judging each situation individually. Because sometimes, as we know, dogs are provoked; by children or by adults.
Quillman added that this is not designed to protect people from specific breeds, it’s designed to protect people from irresponsible dog owners. And first and foremost, it’s still a matter of getting township, city, and county authorities together; so that if something happens after the township animal control office is closed, immediate action can be taken. The committee hopes to have a final ordinance before the City Council in the near future.
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