Bad Dog Further Update
The following is a letter sent to the Director of Animal Services in Marion County:
Tue, Feb 4, 1:00 PM
to james.sweet@marioncountyfl.org
Dear Mr. Sweet
It's now been three weeks since the meeting that Kathy Benton and I had with you and so far neither of us has heard from you or Officer McClure on any subsequent action you've taken with the owner of the dog that attacked me and chased her.
I will copy the letter that I've sent to the other members of Gainesville Cycling Club as a reminder to you of what transpired at that meeting and of what you told us would happen within that week. We were assured that we would be notified of any actions taken by your office and that clearly has not happened. In addition, my call to your office of last week taken by Officer Carr, with messages both for you and for Officer McClure has gone unanswered.
We would appreciate being apprised of any changes that have taken place up until now.
Sincerely
Melinda Koken
On Tuesday, January 14th, 2020, Kathy Benton and I traveled to Ocala to meet with the Director James Sweet of Marion County Animal Services about our recent "encounters" with an aggressive dog on Highway 441 just north of McIntosh. On a club ride on November 29th, 2019, I was attacked, bitten, and my bike and I were pulled to the pavement by a dog whose jaw was clamped firmly onto my calf. Kathy had two later encounters with this same dog in the same area at later dates. Her first encounter was on December 19th, and the second on December 28th. All of these three incidents were reported to Animal Control and involved the Officers thereof who came to the site on two of these incidents. The first after my crash, and the second on Kathy's first incident.
The reason for the meeting was that neither Kathy nor I felt we were being given updated information on these cases or the attention that we felt we deserved in light of the seriousness of these encounters. In fact we felt we were being dismissed as a means of protecting the dog owner, rather than having Animal Services thinking in terms of the safety of bicyclists on a public right of way. This was especially glaring when given the Florida Statutes and Marion County Codes as applied to dogs running free and owners not in control of their animals.
The meeting included the attorney for the Marion County Board of Commissioners, as well as Officer Justin McClure who had contact with Kathy on her initial filing on December 19, as well as Director Sweet. This group meeting led us to think that they were finally taking our concerns seriously.
As the attorney explained the case law that accompanied the code and statutes, if was clear that Animal Services were having to follow certain procedures to insure that their attempts at remedy were not undercut by owner litigation against them. Past case law showed that their efforts would be a lost cause if they chose not to follow these procedures. The remedy that this group of three came up with to show that they were taking action on our behalf, was to issue the owner of the dog, Mr. Robert Richardson, of 21089 North U.S. Hwy 441, a second citation, which they said would be done this week. This citation was for having a Public Nuisance, which cost to the owner would be a substantially larger amount of $273.00. The one issued on December 19 for Failure to Control Animals was for $123.00. This second Citation would be based on the second Affidavit of Complaint filed by Kathy on December 28th. If they subsequently file another Citation as an Irresponsible Animal Owner, it in turn would increase the owner's cost to $323.00, after which the owner would have a mandatory court appearance, with the possibility that the dog could be declared a Dangerous Dog and impounded. As of this writing, we have yet to be contacted with information regarding these actions.
All of this relates to the cumbersome part of government regulation and the time lag entailed as every step of the process is systematically gone through. In the meantime our riders continue to be at risk on this bit of public highway. My suggestion to all interested and responsible GCC members is to keep this issue in the minds of Mr. Sweet, Officer McClure, and Animal Services so that their actions are not slowed by excuses of overwork or distraction. Instead rather to keep a steady stream of emails, letters, and calls ongoing to these individuals until we know for certain that something has been done to remedy a very bad situation for cyclists.
Subsequent to this meeting, I have had surgery to repair the torn ligament in my right thumb, which injury was a result of my crash. Currently, my hand is in a split for the next 4 to 6 weeks to prevent a recurrence while the ligament heals.
The following is contact information for Mr. Sweet: james.sweet@marioncountyfl.org For Director James Sweet and Officer Justin McClure: Animal Services for Marion County, 5701 S.E. 66th Street, Ocala, FL 34480, Phone: 352 671-8700.
Thanks to all for your interest in this matter. Other updates will follow as we receive them.
Sincerely
Melinda Koken, Saddle Tramps Group Captain
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The dog is located just north of McIntosh on US 441. If you need to ride through this area, we recommend that you continue to ride in the right traffic lane and do not merge onto the shoulder as you depart McIntosh. The dog is not deterred by an air horn.
If assaulted by this dog, please call 911 immediately. You can follow up with Marion County Animal Control at 352-671-8727.