[Adopted by Ord. No. 1-2002 (Ch. 6.09 of the 1996 Municipal Code)]
As used in this article, the following words are defined as
follows:
A certified municipal animal control officer or, in the absence
of such an officer, the chief law enforcement officer of the City
or his designee.
The State Department of Health and Senior Services.
Any dog or dog hybrid declared potentially dangerous by the Municipal Court pursuant to § 84-15.
Any dog or dog hybrid declared vicious by the Municipal Court pursuant to § 84-14.
A.
The Animal Control Officer shall seize and impound a dog when the
officer has reasonable cause to believe that the dog:
(1)
Attacked a person and caused death or serious bodily injury as defined
in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1(b) to that person;
(2)
Caused bodily injury as defined in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1(a) to a person
during an unprovoked attack and imposes a serious threat of harm to
persons or domestic animals;
(3)
Engaged in dog fighting activities as described in N.J.S.A. 4:22-24
and 4:22-26; or
(4)
Has been trained, tormented, badgered, baited or encouraged to engage
in unprovoked attacks upon persons or domestic animals.
B.
The dog shall be impounded until the final judicial disposition as
to whether the dog is vicious or potentially dangerous. If approved
by the City's Health Officer, the dog may be impounded in a facility
or other structure agreeable to the owner.
A.
Notice of seizure and impoundment. The Animal Control Officer shall
notify the Municipal Court and the Municipal Health Officer immediately
that he has seized and impounded a dog, or that he has reasonable
cause to believe that a dog has killed another domestic animal and
that a hearing is required.
B.
Effort to identify owner. The Animal Control Officer shall engage
in a reasonable effort to determine the identity of the owner of any
dog seized and impounded.
C.
Notice of hearing. The Animal Control Officer shall, within three
working days of the determination of the identity of the owner of
a dog seized and impounded, notify the owner, by certified mail, return
receipt requested, concerning the seizure and impoundment, and that,
if the owner wishes, a hearing will be held to determine whether the
impounded dog is vicious or potentially dangerous. This notice shall
also require that the owner return, within seven days by certified
mail or hand delivery, a signed statement indicating whether he wishes
the hearing to be conducted or, if not, to relinquish the ownership
of the dog, in which case the dog may be humanely destroyed.
D.
Destruction of dog. The dog may be humanely destroyed if the owner
cannot be identified within seven days of seizure and impoundment,
or if the owner has been identified but cannot be notified by certified
mail return receipt requested, or refuses to sign for the certified
letter, or does not reply to the certified letter with a signed statement
requesting a hearing within seven days of receipt.
A.
Grounds to declare dog vicious. If a hearing is requested, the Municipal
Court shall declare a dog vicious if it finds by clear and convincing
evidence that the dog has engaged in dog fighting activities as described
in N.J.S.A. 4:22-24 and 4:22-26 or has, without provocation, killed
a person or caused serious bodily injury as defined in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1(b)
to a person. The City shall bear the burden of proving that the dog
was not provoked.
B.
Destruction of dog. If the Municipal Court declares a dog to be vicious,
and no appeal is made to the Superior Court, the dog shall be destroyed
in a humane and expeditious manner, except that no dog may be destroyed
during the pendency of an appeal.
A.
Standard for declaration that dog is potentially dangerous. If a
hearing is requested, the Municipal Court shall declare a dog to be
potentially dangerous if it finds, by clear and convincing evidence,
that the dog:
(1)
Caused bodily injury as defined in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1(a) to a person
during an unprovoked attack, and poses a serious threat of bodily
injury or death to a person; or
(3)
Has been trained, tormented, badgered, baited or encouraged to engage
in unprovoked attacks upon persons or domestic animals.
B.
Standard for declaring that a dog is not potentially dangerous. A
dog shall not be declared potentially dangerous for killing a domestic
animal if the domestic animal was the aggressor, or for causing bodily
injury as defined in N.J.S.A. 2C:11-1(a) to a person if the dog was
provoked. The burden of proof shall be imposed upon the City to prove
that the dog was not provoked.
A.
Order and schedule for compliance for potentially dangerous dog.
Upon a finding that a dog is potentially dangerous, the Municipal
Court shall issue an order setting forth its finding and requiring
the owner to comply with the following conditions:
(1)
To apply, at the owner's expense, to the City's Registrar of Vital Statistics for a special municipal potentially dangerous dog license, municipal registration number and red identification tag issued pursuant to § 84-19. The owner shall, at his own expense, have the registration number tattooed upon the dog in a prominent location. A potentially dangerous dog shall be impounded until the owner obtains a municipal potentially dangerous dog license, municipal registration number and red identification tag;
(2)
To immediately erect and maintain an enclosure for the potentially
dangerous dog on the property where the potentially dangerous dog
will be kept and maintained, which has sound sides, top and bottom,
to prevent the potentially dangerous dog from escaping by climbing,
jumping or digging and within a fence of at least six feet in height
separated by at least three feet from the confined area. The owner
of a potentially dangerous dog shall securely lock the enclosure to
prevent the entry of the general public and to preclude any release
or escape of a potentially dangerous dog by an unknowing child or
other person. All potentially dangerous dogs shall be confined in
the enclosure or, if taken out of the enclosure, securely muzzled
and restrained with a tether approved by the Animal Control Officer
and having a minimum tensile strength sufficiently in excess of that
required to restrict the potentially dangerous dog's movements to
a radius of no more than three feet from the owner and under the direct
supervision of the owner;
(3)
To display, in a conspicuous manner, a sign on the property warning
of the potentially dangerous dog, which sign shall be visible and
legible from 50 feet of the enclosure.
B.
Liability insurance. The Municipal Court order may require the owner
to maintain liability insurance in an amount to cover any damage or
injury caused by the potentially dangerous dog. The liability insurance,
which may be separate from any other homeowner policy, shall contain
a provision requiring that the City be named as an additional insured
for the sole purpose of being notified by the insurance company of
any cancellation, termination or expiration of the liability insurance
policy.
D.
Continuing jurisdiction of the Municipal Court upon finding that
dog is not vicious or potentially dangerous. Upon a finding by the
Municipal Court that the dog is not vicious or potentially dangerous,
the Municipal Court shall retain jurisdiction to determine whether
the dog is vicious or potentially dangerous for any subsequent actions
of the dog.
The owner of a potentially dangerous dog shall:
B.
Notify the City's Registrar of Vital Statistics, Division of Police,
and the Animal Control Officer if the potentially dangerous dog is
at large, or has attacked a human being or killed a domestic animal;
C.
Notify the City's Registrar of Vital Statistics, Division of Police,
and the Animal Control Officer within 24 hours of the death, sale
or donation of the potentially dangerous dog;
D.
Prior to selling or donating the dog, inform the prospective owner
that the dog has been declared potentially dangerous;
E.
Upon the sale or donation of the dog to a person residing in a different
municipality, notify the State Department of Health and Senior Services
and the City's Registrar of Vital Statistics, Division of Police and
Animal Control Officer, of the transfer of ownership and the name,
address and telephone of the new owner; and
F.
Pay all dog licensing fees, including the City's potentially dangerous
dog license fee.
A.
Settlement agreement. The City and the owner of the dog may settle
and dispose of the matter at any time in such manner and according
to such terms and conditions as may be mutually agreed upon. As a
condition of a settlement agreement, the City shall require that the
owner of the dog hold the City harmless for any legal expenses or
fees the City may incur in defending against any cause of action brought
against the City. Neither the City nor any of its employees shall
have any liability by virtue of having entered into any settlement
agreement, or for any action or inaction related to the entry into
such agreement, for any injuries or damages thereafter caused by the
dog.
B.
Procedures for appeal. The owner of the dog, or the Animal Control
Officer, may appeal any final decision, order, or judgment, including
any conditions attached thereto, of the Municipal Court by filing
an appeal with the Superior Court, Law Division, in accordance with
the rules governing the Courts of the State of New Jersey pertaining
to appeals from courts of limited jurisdiction. The Superior Court
shall hear the appeal by conducting a hearing de novo.
C.
Cost of impoundment and destruction. Upon the exhaustion of all appeals,
the owner of the dog which has been declared vicious or potentially
dangerous shall be liable to the City for the costs and expenses of
impounding and destroying the dog. The owner shall incur the expense
of impounding the dog in a facility other than the municipal pound,
regardless of whether the dog is ultimately found to be vicious or
potentially dangerous.
A.
Issuance of potentially dangerous dog registration number, red identification
tag and license. The City's Registrar of Vital Statistics shall issue
a potentially dangerous dog registration number and red identification
tag along with a potentially dangerous dog license upon written verification
from the Animal Control Officer that the owner has complied with the
order of the Municipal Court. The last three digits of the potentially
dangerous dog registration number shall be 099.
B.
Telephone number for reporting violations. The City's Registrar of
Vital Statistics shall publicize a telephone number for reporting
violations of this article. The telephone number shall be forwarded
to the Department, which shall be notified immediately of any changes
in the telephone number.
The owner of a potentially dangerous dog who is found by clear
and convincing evidence to have violated this article, or any rule
or regulation adopted by the City, or to have failed to comply with
a court order, shall be subject to a fine to be imposed by the Municipal
Court of not more than $1,000 per day of the violation, and each day's
continuance of the violation shall constitute a separate and distinct
violation. The Animal Control Officer is authorized to seize and impound
any potentially dangerous dog whose owner fails to comply with the
provisions of this article, or any rule or regulation promulgated
by the City, or a court order. The Municipal Court may order that
the dog so seized and impounded be destroyed in an expeditious and
humane manner.
All fines and fees collected or received by the City shall be
deposited in a special account and used by the City to administer
and enforce the regulation of vicious and potentially dangerous dogs
within the City.
Any action undertaken in accordance with this article pursuant
to N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq. shall be deemed to be an exercise of governmental
function and shall be subject to the provisions of the "New Jersey
Tort Claims Act."
