b"New Dangerous Dog Act Creates New Injusticesby April S. Goodwin, Esquire On August 21, 2022, 61-year-old postal worker Pam Rock wasinflicted severe injury if it has aggressively bitten, attacked, or mauled by five dogs in Putnam County, Florida. She died fromendangered a person. More importantly, the reverse is true. If it her injuries the next day. The dogs had previously beenhas inflictedsevereinjuryitdoesnothavetohaveacted involved in at least four documented incidents. Their owneraggressively. This means a dog may accidentally cause severe had attempted to surrender them earlier that year, but Animalinjury to a person and be deemed dangerous. Control failed to follow-up on his requests. Just 11 days afterPenalties for owning a dangerous dog, as defined above, the surrender offer, the dogs hospitalized a man. On Augustinclude securely confining the dog, having warning signs, fines, 10, 2022, just days before Rock's death, one of the dogs dam- and notification to animal control if the dog dies, is given away, aged a car, prompting anotheror the owner moves. police referral to Animal Control.Whilethesepartsofthe The owner again tried to surrenderlaw have not changed, due to the the dogs, but Animal Controlhorrible death of Pam Rock,the declined, finding the owner to havePam Rock law went into effect taken necessary steps to secure theon July 1, 2025. The penalties for dogs.owningadangerousdogwere AfterRocksdeath,thedogsamendedtoincludeseveralnew were finally euthanized. Though thepunitive requirements for owners of Sheriffrecommendedcharges,thedogs who have been declared dan-StateAttorneydeclinedtoprose- gerous by officials. cute,citingtheowner'srepeatedPrior to the official decla-efforts to prevent such an attack.rationofadogasdangerous, Floridahashada dangerousthePamRocklawmandates dog law on the books for decades.Postal worker, Pam Rock thatAnimalControlimmediately Fla. Stat.767.11(3) defines a dan- confiscate any dog accused of killing gerous dog as one that:apersonorinflictingalevel5+biteontheDunbarscale. (a) Has aggressively bitten, attacked, or endangered or hasPreviously,animalcontrolofficershadthediscretionto inflicted severe injury on a human being on public or privatequarantine a dog at its home or to confiscate it. Dogs under property;investigationthatallegedlyinflictedinjurieslessseverethan (b) Has more than once severely injured or killed a domes- death or a level 5+ bite may still be confined at home under tic animal while off the owners property; or strict conditions. (c) Has, when unprovoked, chased or approached a personOnceadogisofficiallydeclareddangerousby Animal upon the streets, sidewalks, or any public grounds in a menacingControl, dog owners now have several requirements in addition fashion or apparent attitude of attack, provided that such actionsto those in the existing law: are attested to in a sworn statement by one or more persons andMandatory $100,000 liability insurance. dutifully investigated by the appropriate authority.Mandatory micro-chipping. Notably, the dog does not have to actually bite anyone. ItDogs must be spayed or neutered. could have aggressively attacked or endangered a person.Owners must obtain a certificate of registration. Althoughthestatutedoesnotdefine endanger,theplainFines doubled to $1,000 per offense. meaningofthewordistocreateadangeroussituation.Voluntarily surrendered dogs that caused death or severe Therefore, if a dog jumps on someone aggressively, even if itinjury must be euthanized; others may be adopted out with dis-didnt cause an injury, it could still be declared dangerous as thisclosure and compliance agreements. behavior is viewed as simply putting a person in harms way.Failure to comply with any requirement, including obtain-The laws use of the word or in subsection (a), . . . or hasingtherequiredinsurance,mayresultinconfiscationand inflictedsevereinjury,meansadogdoesnothavetohaveeuthanasia of the dog. 22 THE NEW BARKERwww.TheNewBarker.com"