NY Dog Bite Law Explained

NY Dog Bite LawExplained, in most situations where a dog owner has knowledge of the aggressiveness of his or her dog, they are liable for injuries inflicted by their dog. If the owner of the dog had no prior knowledge of the dog’s dangerous nature, the victim or their attorney must prove that the dog owner was negligent and subsequently responsible for the attack. In New York State there is the Dangerous Dog Statute where an injured dog bite victim can recover under the common law, as well as the Dangerous Dog Statute.

A dangerous dog is defined as:

• Any dog that when unprovoked, approaches or menaces any person in a dangerous or terrorizing manner upon the streets, sidewalks or any public grounds or places.
• Any dog with a known propensity, tendency or disposition to attack when unprovoked.
• Any dog which bites inflicts injury, assaults or otherwise attacks a human being or domestic animal without provocation on public or private property.

When a dog is determined to be dangerous:

The commissioner may order the owner of a dangerous dog to

1. Muzzle the dog.
2. Confine the dog at all times, indoors in a penned area and display a sign of owning a dangerous dog.
3. Obtain in full force and effect, a liability insurance policy of one-hundred thousand dollars for personal injury or death
4. Be confined and impounded by the proper authorities.

What’s Next:

• If your dog has been deemed "dangerous" and has now been impounded. The owner of the dog may request the commissioner to conduct a hearing to determine if the dog should be returned to the owner.
• No dog shall be considered "dangerous" if the threat, injury or damage caused was sustained by a person who at the time was committing a willful trespass of the premises owned by the dog; was assaulting the dog; had been seen in the past to be assaulting the dog; was committing a crime.
• Evaluation of the dog by a certified applied behaviorist, a board certified veterinary behaviorist, or another recognized expert in the field and completion of training or other treatment deemed appropriate by the expert.
• The dog owner will be responsible for all costs associated with evaluations and training.
• Secure, humane confinement of the dog for a period of time and in a manner deemed appropriate by the judge, but in all instances, the confinement must prevent the escape of the dog, protect the public from unauthorized contact with the dog, and protect the dog from the elements.
• Restraint of the dog on a leash by an adult 21 years of age or older whenever the dog is on public property.
• Muzzling the dog whenever it is on public property in a manner that will prevent it from biting any person or animal.
• Maintenance of a liability insurance policy in an amount to be determined by the judge, but not in excess of $100,000 for personal injury or death resulting from an attack by the dangerous dog.

Euthanasia

Dog Euthanasia or 'putting to sleep or permanent confinement of the dog if the judge finds that the dog, without justification, attacked a person and caused serious physical injury or death; or that the dog had a known vicious propensity as evidenced by a previous unjustified attack on a person that caused serious physical injury or death; or that the dog, without justification caused serious physical injury or death to a companion animal, a farm animal, or a domestic animal, and has, in the past two years, caused unjustified physical injury or death to a companion or farm animal.

Dangerous Dog Owners Liability

A dog owner, who negligently permits a dog to bite a person causing serious physical injury, is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $800. A dog owner who negligently permits a dog that was previously determined to be dangerous, to bite a person causing serious physical injury is subject to a fine of $1,000, a term of imprisonment up to 90 days, or both.

If any dog, which was determined to be a dangerous dog, without justification, kills a person who is peaceably conducting himself in any place where he is lawfully entitled to be, regardless of whether such dog escapes without fault of the owner, the owner will be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor, which carries a penalty of up to one year in prison. The owner of a dangerous dog is strictly liable for medical costs resulting from injury caused by the dog to a person, companion animal, farm animal, or domestic animal, so long as the dog attacked without justification.

DOG BITE STATS

There are almostfive million dog bites every year in the United States, which costs the government, taxpayers, and insurance companies almost $1 billion every year. Over 800,000 of these dog bites need medical attention and 1,000 people each day need emergency medical care for dog bite injuries. Sadly, children are the most frequent victims of dog bites, and they often suffer disfiguring and debilitating trauma to the face. Dog bites have been on the rise since the 1990's. The numbers of dogs only increased by 2% over seven years, but the number of dog bites increased 33%. The causes for this increase in bites can be attributed to a number of factors, but regardless of the reason dog bites have reached epidemic proportions. Dog owners do not want that "first bite" on record and may plead with you to not report the incident. That would be an unwise solution.

Treatment OF A Dog Bite A MUST!

Seek medical attention immediately. Have a doctor examine your injuries, in doing so this will trigger an official bite report. If you do not seek medical attention immediately you may fall ill or even die.

As in the case of Dolly Newell:

An 80-year-old Alameda woman died three days after she was bitten in the hand by a dog. The woman was walking her Rottweiler, on a Saturday when another dog bit her finger. The women never reported the bite because she didn't want the dog to be quarantined. Instead, she told doctors at Alameda Hospital that she had injured herself while gardening. A couple of days later, a friend went to check on her and found her semi-conscious. She was taken back to the hospital, where she died of an infection from the bite. Newell had told acquaintances the real cause of her wound.

Top 10 Most Dangerous Dog Breeds:

• Pit Bulls
• Rottweiler's
• German Shepherds
• Huskies
• Alaskan Malamutes
• Doberman Pinschers
• Chow Chow
• Presa Canario
• Boxer
• Dalmatian

Get Legal Help:

Ajlouny & AssociatesNY Dog bite lawyers help victims of a dangerous dog recover compensation for their physical and psychological injuries. Statistically dogs most often bite innocent children. Our senior attorneys at Ajlouny and Associates understand the sensitive nature of such an accident when providing legal counsel to the families and victims of such a terrible incident.

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Ajlouny Injury Law

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Brooklyn, NY 11242

(718) 670-3331